Kruger National Park Section Ranger Arrested

[H. erectus]

Hey RP, lets face it, the rot starts at grass roots,...

Let's not create certain scenarios for debate,...

This whole "Thing" about conservation and concern
is coming at loggerheads with itself!!!!

[Richprins]

The rot starts from the top, IMO, H.!

This guy's son was caught regarding rhino contravention a few months ago. Also, no matter what anyone says, this is the first section ranger to be arrested for poaching since the 1980's



Anyway...implications of section ranger arrested for poaching:

1. A MASSIVE impact on morale regarding fellow section rangers, antipoaching staff, and all honest ones down the entire line of command in Kruger. Army and SAPS are irrelevant here.

2. An unintentional magnifying glass on other section rangers...for most it is the last thing they need now, but perhaps not all...


3. Thank Heavens for this arrest, but what does it say about the mentality of Kruger staff? Sheer arrogance from a top-level local...why should those lower down then not also be involved? Notice a game guard and a worker were also arrested..so obviously no big secret in the staff village there, IMO? (And here Army and Police become relevant too...they operate under the ultimate watch of the section ranger, IMO, for practical purposes.)

4. Disappointment and betrayal felt by potential applicants for section ranger posts, from school level upward.

5. A revisiting regarding the appointment of section rangers lately with BEE and affirmative action as prerequisites, as decided by SP years ago. I'm all for that, but the relevant selection processes may be resubmitted to public scrutiny regarding competency and what not, which is again demoralising.


6. The question of salaries paid to staff: That is no excuse at all. I'm a civil servant myself, and knew what I was letting myself in for when joining. Same applies to police and army.

[Lisbeth]

Not a too pretty picture

[Bushcraft]

RP, I’m in the game of security and a pre qualification is a thing called PSIRA, google it. All SANParks staff are in the business of securing our parks, so shouldn’t they have to qualify under the same scrutiny. I have to submit to a polygraph as a pre qualification, shouldn’t they

[H. erectus]

Geeesh RP, flowing from the artists' brush, a very comforting
oil painting of heyday would be, a excuse for existence,.....

[Scipio]

Now I am thinking, are these people paid by a syndicate from outside for their pparticipation or does Kruger ans Sanparks not have their own little syndicate inside the ranks. That would be a problem methinks.

[mposthumus]

To be honest I was thinking along the same line

[Richprins]

At this level, I doubt whether the Ranger would send his horn via the normal Maputo channels, but who knows how they think?

Anyway, the real article, so to speak:

Section ranger arrested for alleged rhino poaching

A field guide and the gardener of the section ranger were allegedly busy dehorning a white rhino when the officials stumbled upon them

Nicolene Smalman | 23 September 2014 11:03


LOWER SABIE – Three SANParks employees were apprehended for rhino poaching in the Kruger National Park (KNP) on the eve of World Rhino Day.

Two were caught in the act of dehorning the animal they had just killed. The third suspect is no one other than the section ranger of Lower Sabie, who allegedly supplied his two accomplices with the rifle they had used to slaughter the animal.

These arrests were secured due to police and SANParks officials being in the right place at the right time. They were busy with routine operations in the park – visiting old poaching scenes in the Lower Sabie area – collecting DNA and valuable evidence, when they heard two shots being fired.

They immediately went in the direction of the shots that had been fired and made a gruesome discovery. A field guide and the gardener of the section ranger were allegedly busy dehorning a white rhino when the officials stumbled upon them.

They were immediately arrested and a hunting rifle, ammunition, vehicle and poaching equipment were seized.

It later emerged that the rifle they had used to kill the animal, apparently belonged to the section ranger – a .458 calibre. Rangers are usually issued with R1 rifles, as well as .458 and .375 calibres to protect tourists on walking trails. The section ranger was also apprehended.

The men were detained in the holding cells at Skukuza Police Station and would formally be charged today when they appear in the White River Magistrate’s Court on poaching-related charges. A strong presence from conservation enthusiasts is expected at the court today. Mr Ian McDonald, game ranging and wildlife management senior lecturer at Unigrad, also indicated that he and his students would attend.

http://lowvelder.co.za/224501/section-r ... -poaching/

[Toko]

Lowvelder update Poaching suspects claim they were assaulted by police

Senior state advocate Ms Isabet Erwee then indicated to the court that she is aware of the allegations and that the suspects had been advised to open criminal charges against the relevant officials
Nicolene Smalman | 23 September 2014 15:24

WHITE RIVER – Three SANParks employees who were coincidentally apprehended in the Kruger National Park (KNP) on Sunday, briefly appeared in the local Magistrate’s Court today on poaching related charges. Two of them claim that they were brutally assaulted by police during their arrest.
Mr Lawrence Baloyi (42) – section ranger of Lower Sabie, Mr André Mabunda (43) – a field guide and Mr Shakes Baloyi (46) – a gardener, appeared before Magistrate Mr De Wet Oosthuizen. It was a dramatic court appearance as Mabunda and Shakes were struggling to walk from the holding cells to the dock. They sat down immediately and held their heads in their hands.
Their defence attorney, Ms Hettie Groenewald, indicated that they will testify that they had been assaulted by police officials during their arrest. “They are in severe pain and require further medical attention. They have been at the hospital already,” she said.
Senior state advocate Ms Isabet Erwee then indicated to the court that she is aware of the allegations and that the suspects had been advised to open criminal charges against the relevant officials.
Groenewald and Erwee had a disagreement as Groenewald wanted the case to stand down so that the accused could visit a district physician in order for a J88 to be completed. A J88 is an official police document used to indicate injuries on a victim or accused.
Erwee stated that the accused had no visible marks on their faces or hands on which Groenewald said that she was not a doctor. She insisted that they visit a physician in order for a J88 to be completed. Oosthuizen asked Mabunda and Shakes to look up and concurred that they had no visible marks, but agreed that the matter be postponed so that they could get the necessary medical attention.
The case against them was postponed to October 3.

[Richprins]

http://www.voanews.com/content/south-af ... 31943.html
August 29, 2014



Ranger Lawrence Baloi says his job has changed from focusing on conservation to security. "You need your heart to do this," he says about his risky job. (Photo: Gillian Parker for VOA)

Lawrence Baloi, a ranger of the Lower Sabie, knows how easy it is for young men to be coaxed into the hunt.

“They are clever… if someone got a rhino, it’s like a big boss, mega big party, all the ladies - they rise to him. So, he is sending information that: guys, [while] you [are] busy sitting here, we are making money there. Follow me next. That’s why those groups escalate every day,” said Baloi.