The South African National Parks today expressed delight at a heavy 30 year sentence meted out by the Mhala Regional Court on a poacher who was arrested in the Kruger National Park (KNP) in 2015.

The court found the poacher guilty on charges of:

  1. Being an illegal immigrant.
  2. Trespassing in a National Park.
  3. Possession of an unlicensed firearm.
  4. Possession of unlicensed ammunition.
  5. Possession of a firearm with the intent to commit a crime.
  6. The killing of two rhinoceros.
  7. Possession of a dangerous weapon.

“The sentence will send a message to all the criminals who are awaiting trial and those intending to plunder our natural heritage that their criminal acts will not go unpunished,“ said Mketeni, CEO of SANParks.

SANParks went on to report that there are still 182 poaching related cases that still need to be finalised. This indicates the urgency for the wheels of justice to be more effective in their convictions to keep pace with the success of anti-poaching arrests efforts.

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