Mozambican court sentences notorious KNP poaching kingpin
A man from Massingir has been handed a hefty prison sentence for his role in various crimes including poaching in the Kruger National Park.
South African National Parks (SANParks) has welcomed the sentencing of poaching syndicate leader Simon Ernesto Valoi.
Valoi, known as ‘Navara’, was sentenced to 27 years in prison by a Mozambican court. His accomplice, Paulo Zukula, received a 24-year sentence.
SANParks reports that Valoi, from Massingir —about 330km north of Maputo and near Kruger National Park — was a major rhino-poaching figure. “Valoi is known for targeting the park. The conviction covers multiple crimes,” says SANParks head of communications JP Louw.
The court found Valoi and Zukula guilty of financing terrorism, poaching, selling protected species, money laundering, using banned weapons, forging documents, trafficking illegal guns and vehicles, and criminal conspiracy.
“For a long time, Valoi’s wealth and status as a recruiter who sent young men across the border to hunt rhinos shielded him from prosecution until his arrest in July 2022.”
Valoi and Zukula were apprehended by the National Criminal Investigation Service in Maputo following a co-ordinated operation with the Wildlife Justice Commission, which works to disrupt organised crime networks trafficking wildlife, timber, and fish. Authorities seized rhino horns during the arrest.
“Several of Valoi’s relatives are also reported to have been detained for assisting the criminal network,” Louw concludes.
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