Three years jail term for possession of pangolin
During the search, police found a 25 litre bucket with a live pangolin inside.
Three men were sentenced to three years each in the Lenyenye Regional Court for possession of endangered species.
Shadrack Malatji (62), Israel Mametja (37) and France Shai (36) were convicted for illegal possession of a pangolin.
The court heard that on Tuesday, August 19, 2016 at about 07:30, the police received information about three suspects that were in possession of a pangolin.
They were driving a Toyota Hilux bakkie along the Oaks Road to Sekororo village.
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The police rhino task team acted swiftly, spotted the vehicle heading into the direction of Sekororo Village, stopped the vehicle and searched it.
The animal was safely taken back to the nature reserve.
Prior to their sentencing, the men were out on R3 000 bail each.
