War on Poachers is Intensifying as Incursions are Relentless & Stats are Devastating

The war on rhino poaching in South Africa, particularly in the Kruger National Park, scored several successes in the last fortnight, culminating with the arrests this week of a former South African National Parks (SANParks) field Sergeant and two police constables.

Hopefully these arrests will go some way towards curbing the escalating poaching figures – currently standing at 419 rhino tragically mutilated and killed in South Africa during the first five months of this year.

The two constables who have been arrested were based at the Skukuza police station in the Kruger. It had been their responsibility to patrol the streets around the park and to confront any vehicle which displayed suspicious activity in connection with poaching.

“It is clear that these members were doing the opposite,” said Major General Simon Mapyane, head of the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (the Hawks) in Mpumalanga.

The intelligence-driven arrests on Tuesday were the result of a joint operation between Kruger Park officials and the Hawks, led  by Colonel Johan Brits in his last days of service before retirement.

According to a statement released by the Department of Environmental Affairs “park rangers and the Endangered Species team of the Hawks were on their routine duties when they came across a black rhinoceros carcass in the Kruger National Park on Tuesday morning.

“The team pulled a marked Skukuza police van over after receiving information. On searching the van, a person suspected of being a poacher, who was armed with a .375 hunting rifle and rounds of ammunition, was found. When the constables were asked about the man and the rifle, they could not give a satisfactory explanation and were arrested.”

Apart from the rifle and ammunition, a silencer and other poaching equipment were also seized.

Major General Mapyane, congratulated his Hawks team and their leader Colonel Brits, who went on pension just yesterday after serving the police for 39 years and eight days.

“He is leaving a mark and has handed the mantle to the team,” said the Major General.

The Minister of Environmental Affairs, Edna Molewa, welcomed the news of the arrests and congratulated the SANParks and SAPs officials for their “outstanding work”. She said “the arrest sends a strong message that officials alleged to be involved in poaching will be arrested and face the full might of the law.”

Both police officers who were arrested will face charges of corruption and the person suspected of being a poacher will face charges of being in the possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition.

Their appearance in the Skukuza Magistrates’ Court will be scheduled soon.

In another operation in the early hours of 27 May 2014, rangers at Pretoriuskop came in contact with a group of suspected poachers. During the incident, one of the suspects was fatally wounded and the remaining two escaped in the dark. Poaching equipment, a .458 hunting rifle and ammunition were seized.

The Officer Commanding of the SANParks Rangers Corps, Major General (RET) Johan Jooste said that the war on poachers is intensifying but that the men and women in uniform are certainly up to the task and thanked them for their commitment and dedication to the fight to save South Africa’s Natural heritage.

“The incursions are now relentless and taking their toll on our resources, but we have men and women that are dedicated and fully committed to the cause, they are determined to win this war,” said Maj Gen (ret) Jooste.

In the week before these latest incidents, SANParks and SAPs operations inside and outside the Kruger had also recorded the following achievements:

• Three foreign Chinese nationals were arrested in Gauteng on the 22nd May for possession and dealing in rhino horn
• Six suspected poachers were arrested in the surrounding areas just outside the Kruger National Park
• Two suspected poachers were arrested and two fatally wounded inside the Kruger National Park

The Kruger is under massive pressure as it is a huge target for poachers because it holds over 80% of the world’s population of both white and black wild rhino.

The rhinos are being illegally hunted for their horns, the majority of which are then shipped to South East Asia where there is a demand, particularly in China and Vietnam, because citizens in these countries are under the false belief that rhino horns contain medicinal properties.

Crime syndicates, including those that are involved in funding terrorism activities, have been identified as the main culprits in recruiting poachers.

Devastating Statistics

Since the start of this year,  a total of 419 rhinos have been poached in South Africa of which over half – 272 – were killed in the Kruger National Park (KNP). Forty-eight were killed in Limpopo, 41 in KwaZulu-Natal and 26 in North West.

A total of 119 arrests related to rhino poaching have been made in the country this year, with 52 of those being arrested in the KNP.

To win this war against rhino poaching, it is vital that the leaders (“kingpins”) of these poaching operations are identified and arrested.

If you have ANY information that could help in the fight against poachers, please:

• Call the Tip-off lines 0800 205 005, 08600 10111or 32211;
• Contact Crime Line where you will remain anonymous; or
• Contact your nearest police station with information.