443 poachers arrested in 2016

A joint operation between police officers and rangers from the Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) led to the arrest of 443 suspected poachers, with 57 convicted and sentenced last year alone.

In a statement yesterday, ZimParks spokesperson, Caroline Washaya-Moyo said the convicts received a minimum jail term of seven years each.Washaya-Moyo said 211 cases were investigated during the year, with 116 being concluded. She said the culprits included a majority Zimbabweans, 31 Zambians, seven nationals from Mozambique and one South African.

The authority said it had made significant recoveries following the arrests, which included 76 tusks, 179 pieces of ivory, 36 live pangolins, 8 pangolin trophies and 22 firearms.

More: NewsDay

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