Five alleged poachers caught red-handed in sting operation

Five alleged poachers reportedly caught red-handed dealing with a pregnant pangolin are expected to appear in Pretoria Magistrate’s Court today, facing charges of illegal possession and trade in the animal.

Four of the five suspects arrested in Midrand on 5 August were Zimbabweans and the fifth was South African.

The suspects were reportedly caught in the act by Prof Ray Jansen from the African Pangolin Working Group.

Jansen went undercover in a sting operation with the Cullinan police stock theft and endangered species units, police dog unit, as well as the US department of homeland security and the Green Scorpions. The gang were bust at a Shell garage in Midrand last Thursday.

“I made contact with the poachers via a member of the public on 1 August,” Jansen said.

He asked the poachers via WhatsApp to meet them so they could see the animal was alive.

“The five suspects arrived in a Toyota Corolla and I climbed into the car where I saw the pangolin in the box,” Jansen said.

“When I gave the signal police moved in from their hiding places and arrested the suspects.”

He said because a big crowd gathered after the arrests, he used the opportunity to inform the community about pangolin poaching. The rescued pangolin was taken to a facility of the Johannesburg Veterinary Hospital where she was recovering in the high care unit.

“She weighs 7.3kg but should be about 10kg,” Jansen said.

He explained her weight loss could be due to being in captivity for more than a week.

“One of the suspects said he fetched her from close to the border in Limpopo,” he said.

Jansen said he believed the pangolin was possibly poached from Zimbabwe because the majority of the group were Zimbabweans.

The animal will undergo further observation this week to determine how far pregnant she is. She will be released back into the wild as soon as she has picked up an appropriate amount of weight.