Three rhino poachers have been sentenced to 25 years in jail
Aselmo Baloyi, Jawaki Nkuna, and Ismael Baloyi from Mozambique received the sentence after being found guilty of illegally hunting rhino in the Kruger National Park in July 2010.
The three were arrested, together with another man, in possession of two freshly chopped rhino horns, an assault rifle, a hunting rifle, and an axe. The fourth accused tried to escape, but was re-arrested and died in custody last year.
“The sentencing of these poachers is an indication that as a country we are taking more stringent measures in the fight against rhino poaching,” said David Mabunda, chief executive of the South African park service.
Until now, poachers were typically given up to a few years in jail or fined. The maximum sentence for illegal rhino hunting is 10 years in jail, and for possession of a prohibited firearm 15 years jail, the park service said in a statement.
The three poachers received the maximum sentence for each offence, to run consecutively.
A record 448 rhinos were poached last year in South Africa, home to the greatest number of the animals, as rising demand in Asia for their horns led to an increase in illegal hunting. The street value of rhinoceros horn has soared to about $65,000 a kilogram, making it more expensive than gold and platinum, as a belief — with no basis in science — has taken hold in recent years in parts of Asia that eating it can cure or prevent cancer.
A decade ago South Africa, home to more than 20,000 rhinos, was losing about 15 animals a year to poachers. But poaching has increased dramatically since about 2007 as the spread of wealth in places like Vietnam and Thailand has enabled more people to buy rhino horn for use in traditional medicine.
The number of rhinoceroses dying unnatural deaths in South Africa, through illegal poaching or legal hunts, has reached a level that will reduce the population if not checked, according to a study by Richard Emslie, an expert in the field.
About half the poaching takes place in Kruger, the country’s flagship park bordering Mozambique, where soldiers and surveillance aircraft have been deployed in recent months to slow the carnage.
The 25-year sentences handed to the three rhino poachers by the Phalaborwa Regional Court has been welcomed by Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa.
“Minister Molewa believes the court sentence will send a strong message and hopefully act as a deterrent to poachers and would-be poachers,” her spokesman Albi Modise, said in a statement.
Modise said the poachers’ sentencing coincided with government increasing its anti-poaching activities to safeguard rhino.
These included SA National Defence Force patrols along the 350km national border in the Kruger National Park, and the deployment of conservation specialists at ports where rhino horns could be imported or exported.
“The department and SA National Parks are also in the process of beefing up patrols in the Kruger National Park by deploying an additional 150 rangers,” Modise said.
The South African government was also engaging with Mozambican authorities to improve cross-border law enforcement.
Limpopo police commissioner Lt-Gen Simon Mpembe also warned that the fight against poaching would be intensified this year.
Long jail terms to deter rhino poaching
Three rhino poachers have been sentenced to 25 years in jail
Aselmo Baloyi, Jawaki Nkuna, and Ismael Baloyi from Mozambique received the sentence after being found guilty of illegally hunting rhino in the Kruger National Park in July 2010.
The three were arrested, together with another man, in possession of two freshly chopped rhino horns, an assault rifle, a hunting rifle, and an axe. The fourth accused tried to escape, but was re-arrested and died in custody last year.
“The sentencing of these poachers is an indication that as a country we are taking more stringent measures in the fight against rhino poaching,” said David Mabunda, chief executive of the South African park service.
Until now, poachers were typically given up to a few years in jail or fined. The maximum sentence for illegal rhino hunting is 10 years in jail, and for possession of a prohibited firearm 15 years jail, the park service said in a statement.
The three poachers received the maximum sentence for each offence, to run consecutively.
A record 448 rhinos were poached last year in South Africa, home to the greatest number of the animals, as rising demand in Asia for their horns led to an increase in illegal hunting. The street value of rhinoceros horn has soared to about $65,000 a kilogram, making it more expensive than gold and platinum, as a belief — with no basis in science — has taken hold in recent years in parts of Asia that eating it can cure or prevent cancer.
A decade ago South Africa, home to more than 20,000 rhinos, was losing about 15 animals a year to poachers. But poaching has increased dramatically since about 2007 as the spread of wealth in places like Vietnam and Thailand has enabled more people to buy rhino horn for use in traditional medicine.
The number of rhinoceroses dying unnatural deaths in South Africa, through illegal poaching or legal hunts, has reached a level that will reduce the population if not checked, according to a study by Richard Emslie, an expert in the field.
About half the poaching takes place in Kruger, the country’s flagship park bordering Mozambique, where soldiers and surveillance aircraft have been deployed in recent months to slow the carnage.
The 25-year sentences handed to the three rhino poachers by the Phalaborwa Regional Court has been welcomed by Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa.
“Minister Molewa believes the court sentence will send a strong message and hopefully act as a deterrent to poachers and would-be poachers,” her spokesman Albi Modise, said in a statement.
Modise said the poachers’ sentencing coincided with government increasing its anti-poaching activities to safeguard rhino.
These included SA National Defence Force patrols along the 350km national border in the Kruger National Park, and the deployment of conservation specialists at ports where rhino horns could be imported or exported.
“The department and SA National Parks are also in the process of beefing up patrols in the Kruger National Park by deploying an additional 150 rangers,” Modise said.
The South African government was also engaging with Mozambican authorities to improve cross-border law enforcement.
Limpopo police commissioner Lt-Gen Simon Mpembe also warned that the fight against poaching would be intensified this year.
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