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Open doors: Official complicity in cross-border rhino horn poaching and smuggling
An Oxpeckers reporter speaks to syndicate insiders about the role of corrupt law enforcement officials enabling cross-border illegal trade in rhino horns At a smugglers’ “den” near the Lebombo post between South Africa and Mozambique, a former rhino horn smuggler described how border officials receive bribes to ensure safe passage for illicit goods. “If you know the right police manning the border crossing, no problems are encountered. Money talks,” he said. Atanasio* said he currently works as a mechanic in the border area and manages a drug-smuggling operation. He has multiple identities and has gone undetected by law enforcement agencies. The smuggler’s den, masquerading as a car-spraying workshop, was a…
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Poachers’ partners: When Kruger’s rangers turn rogue
Insiders describe why, and how, rangers sworn to protect wildlife collude with poaching syndicates slaughtering rhinos. Tulani Ngwenya investigates Despite integrity tests and modern surveillance technology, insiders at the Kruger National Park reveal that corruption persists systemically, fuelled by poverty wages, predatory debt cycles, and communal ties binding rogue rangers to syndicates. After months of building trust, Oxpeckers gained exclusive access to information from four people who have witnessed firsthand the dark realities of the illegal connections and how they operate. They described a world where financial pressure, coercion and broken systems converge to push even well-intentioned rangers into the orbit of rhino-poaching syndicates. Melusi*, a mid-level Kruger manager involved in anti-poaching…
