SAPS, SANDF & SANParks Employees Involved in Poaching

[Richprins]

I'm not so sure if this is the incident, and if it is not so sure it should unfold like that, presuming the cars behind are innocent tourists...

[Flutterby]

RP, from the comments I think it was the same incident.

[Richprins]

[Richprins]

Ex-cop charged with alleged rhino poaching again
Charges of poaching and corruption were dropped against him in 2015.
2 hours ago


BUSHBUCKRIDGE – Mr Dennis Mkhonto (38), a former policeman, appeared in court yesterday with an employee of the Department of Health and other two co-accused, for alleged involvement in rhino poaching.

In December Lowvelder reported that charges of corruption and poaching against Mkhonto and four others were struck off the roll, after police failed to conduct their investigations timeously.

Last Tuesday his three months of freedom came to an end.

According to the Hawks’ Brig Hangwani Mulaudzi, “the policeman and three other suspects” were arrested in Skukuza. They were apparently on their way to poach rhino in the Kruger National Park.

Hawks’ spokesman, Lieut. Lucy Sekgotodi, has since identified the other three accused.

“They are Mr Goodman Ntandane (35), Mr Madala Maatsane (23) and Mr River Khoza (23) who works for the Department of Health,” she said.

Last week Mulaudzi said the four had allegedly been planning to poach rhino on Wednesday. However, their plans became known to the police’s crime intelligence unit and their vehicle was intercepted.

Although one of the accused tried to evade arrest, a member of the environmental crime investigations unit managed to track him down. According to Mulaudzi, the accused were found in possession of a .458 hunting rifle, a silencer, ammunition, nine knives, hunting knives, a saw and two-way radios.

A SANParks’ helicopter was also dispatched and a second suspicious-looking vehicle was spotted. The helicopter landed on a road and a fourth suspect was arrested, much to the jubilation of visitors to the Kruger who witnessed the scene.

According to Mulaudzi, a hunting rifle was found in his possession.

The four accused appeared in the Bushbuckridge Magistrate’s Court on Friday. According to Sekgotodi, they were provisionally charged with the illegal possession of firearms and ammunition.

Yesterday their bail hearing continued in this same court.

At time of going to press, the outcome had not yet known.


http://lowvelder.co.za/321838/ex-cop-ch ... ing-again/

[Richprins]

Dennis Mkhonto

[Toko]

In December Lowvelder reported that charges of corruption and poaching against Mkhonto and four others were struck off the roll, after police failed to conduct their investigations timeously.

Richprins found us this article

http://lowvelder.co.za/306838/three-cop ... walk-free/

Three cops and a ranger accused of poaching walk free
The high court judge said the case worried him and that our country’s national heritage was under siege.
December 9, 2015

MBOMBELA – The SAPS’ anti-corruption unit failed to investigate corruption and poaching charges levelled against three of its own timeously. When it came to light that investigations against Constables Arnold Mashele, Morris Sehlabela, Dennis Mkhonto and game ranger Mr Phineas Dinda had not yet been completed, the case against them was struck from the Nelspruit Regional Court’s roll recently.

Lowvelder had been reporting on the “three cops and a ranger” case for more than a year. In May 2014, the paper reported that Mashele and Sehlabela had been arrested after a joint operation between the Hawks and Kruger National Park officials.

It was alleged that Mashele and Sehlabela were assisting a suspected poacher (Dinda).

Since their arrest, they had applied for and appealed a number of bail applications, which were unsuccessful.

Mashele’s, Sehlabela’s and Mkontho’s applications started on June 4 last year. Dinda’s bail application was heard and denied on July 2.

On July 15, Mashele and Sehlabela applied for bail again, on the 22nd magistrate Ms Winnie Baloyi denied their request. Mashele brought a new bail application on a fresh set of facts, which was also denied by magistrate Mr Heki Ntombeni.

Sehlabela, Mkhonto and Mashele headed to the High Court to try their luck. Judge Mr Francois Botes did not grant their application.

He said they had a responsibility to protect our animals, which they had forsaken: “It is the responsibility of the SAPS and SANParks to protect rhinos from being poached. Members of the SAPS and SANParks should not take part in the illegal and unlawful poaching of rhinos.”
He said the case gave him great reason to worry and that our country’s national heritage was under siege.

This didn’t stop Mashele from applying for bail in the White River Magistrate’s court a month ago.
This time, his health served as motivation for his application. Magistrate Ms Winnie Baloyi again denied bail.

When the case against the four was withdrawn, magistrate Mr André Geldenhuys said it could be reinstated following more police investigations.

[Lisbeth]

Are they all corrupt? How is this possible

A police investigation is stopped without reason (from what we know) and the criminals go free

[Bushcraft]

Are they all corrupt?

[Toko]

Update on the trial Mashego & Sithole: Lowvelder: SANDF soldier accused of poaching: Rangers shot at me for no reason

[Richprins]

Helene Eloff


MBOMBELA – Closing arguments were presented by counsel for the state and defence in the highly publicised rhino-poaching trial of Mr Leonard Bhuti Mashego, a soldier and chef in the employ of the South African National Defence Force and his co-accused, Mr Micheal Sithole, on Tuesday.

Both accused’s legal representatives maintained that their clients were not guilty of the 23 poaching-related charges levelled against them. On Tuesday during the conclusion
of the accused’s case, it was claimed that authorities had framed the two for rhino poaching to cover up the shooting of Mashego, an apparently innocent man.

Read: “We were framed” says poaching accused in Nelspruit Ragional Court.

The trial against Mashego and Sithole commenced in 2010 after their arrest in the early morning hours of September 25 that year. During the course of the trial, Kruger National Park (KNP) game rangers and investigators Mr Frik Rossouw and Mr Cobus de Wet from the KNP’s Environmental Crime Services testified that the two had been found on either side of the Kruger’s fence, close to a rhino-poaching scene, on that date.

They allegedly had rhino horn, a firearm, ammunition and other weapons used in the poaching of rhino and rhino horn removal in their possession. According to the testimony of game rangers who may not be identified, Mashego pointed his firearm towards the rangers, whereafter they opened fire. Mashego was shot in his shoulder.

On Tuesday, his attorney, Mr Auper Klaas Khoza, said the game rangers had acted wrongfully in shooting Mashego. Khoza said a case of attempted murder should have been investigated against the game rangers. No such case had been opened. He argued that the poaching charges against Mashego were merely a ploy by the authorities to evade liability for shooting his client without cause.

In January Mashego swore that he had done nothing wrong at the time of his arrest. He explained that he had been searching for his cattle that had gotten lost four days prior.

Sithole testified that his arrest, too, came out of the blue. According to him, he had been digging for special herbs when he heard rangers calling him from afar. When he reached the rangers, Sithole was told to lie down. He said guns and rhino horn were propped up next to him. According to him, he was photographed next to these objects. His attorney, Mr Daniel Mabunda, said these photos were used to frame his client.

Mashego and Khoza both argued that the state’s witnesses, who had testified one after the other since 2013, had contradicted each other. Although ballistic evidence was previously presented to link the events of September 25 with the poaching of three more rhino on June 10 and September 22 that year.

Khoza contested that the state’s case relied purely on circumstantial evidence. It was argued on behalf of both accused that the state had not proved its case beyond reasonable doubt. Senior state advocate Ms Isabet Erwee plead for a guilty verdict, arguing to the contrary. The magistrate, Mr André Geldenhuys, has provisionally reserved judgement until April 21.