Police have appealed for help in catching three suspected rhino poachers who escaped from the holding cells at the Badplaas police station three months ago.
The three – Lucky Maseko, 28, Mduduzi Mathebula, 23, and Joseph Sifunda, 40 – escaped after allegedly cutting through cell bars on March 18, said police spokesperson Lt-Col Leonard Hlathi.
“The three were awaiting trial when they escaped from jail. The bars were cut open and the three accused escaped,” said Hlathi.
Mandla Khoza and Masoka Dube
Police have appealed for help in catching three suspected rhino poachers who escaped from the holding cells at the Badplaas police station three months ago.
The three – Lucky Maseko, 28, Mduduzi Mathebula, 23, and Joseph Sifunda, 40 – escaped after allegedly cutting through cell bars on March 18, said police spokesperson Lt-Col Leonard Hlathi.
“The three were awaiting trial when they escaped from jail. The bars were cut open and the three accused escaped,” said Hlathi.
They were facing charges of poaching and the illegal possession of firearms and were due to appear at the Carolina Magistrate’s Court.
“We do not know how they gained access to the tools they used to saw through the bars.”
He advised the public not to approach the three but to contact the police if they saw the men.
Mpumalanga, which is home to some of the country’s premier game reserves, has recently experienced a surge in rhino poaching, a problem that is on the increase countrywide.
The South African National Parks (SANParks) has also appealed to the public to help put those involved in rhino poaching behind bars.
Parks spokesperson Wanda Mkutshulwa said whistle-blowers should feel free to come forward, even if the evidence implicated SANParks officials.
“No cow is bigger than others, so if the evidence points to some of the parks officials, they will be investigated,” said Mkutshulwa.
She said the evidence needed to be concrete, however, to ensure an arrest and conviction.
She warned that baseless allegations would not be entertained and stressed that, to date, no parks officials or rangers had been found to be part of the poaching problem.
Mkutshulwa said anyone with information about rhino poaching should phone the nearest park or report the matter to police.
On May 19 three suspected poachers were shot dead by soldiers patrolling the Kruger National Park.
Mkutshulwa said more than 159 rhinos had been killed in the Kruger this year. She said private rhino owners were losing a lot of money due to the rampant killing of white and black rhino.
According to SANParks, 333 rhino were killed in South Africa last year. In 2009, 122 rhino were killed in the country, compared to only 13 that were poached in 2007.
In September, an official report implicated two senior Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency (MTPA) officials in rhino poaching in the province.
MTPA chief executive Charles Ndabeni implicated top officials in a report submitted to the former economic development and environmental affairs MEC Jabu Mahlangu.
The report has never been made public. – AENS
They were facing charges of poaching and the illegal possession of firearms and were due to appear at the Carolina Magistrate’s Court.
“We do not know how they gained access to the tools they used to saw through the bars.”
He advised the public not to approach the three but to contact the police if they saw the men.
Mpumalanga, which is home to some of the country’s premier game reserves, has recently experienced a surge in rhino poaching, a problem that is on the increase countrywide.
The South African National Parks (SANParks) has also appealed to the public to help put those involved in rhino poaching behind bars.
Parks spokesperson Wanda Mkutshulwa said whistle-blowers should feel free to come forward, even if the evidence implicated SANParks officials.
“No cow is bigger than others, so if the evidence points to some of the parks officials, they will be investigated,” said Mkutshulwa.
She said the evidence needed to be concrete, however, to ensure an arrest and conviction.
She warned that baseless allegations would not be entertained and stressed that, to date, no parks officials or rangers had been found to be part of the poaching problem.
Mkutshulwa said anyone with information about rhino poaching should phone the nearest park or report the matter to police.
On May 19 three suspected poachers were shot dead by soldiers patrolling the Kruger National Park.
Mkutshulwa said more than 159 rhinos had been killed in the Kruger this year. She said private rhino owners were losing a lot of money due to the rampant killing of white and black rhino.
According to SANParks, 333 rhino were killed in South Africa last year. In 2009, 122 rhino were killed in the country, compared to only 13 that were poached in 2007.
In September, an official report implicated two senior Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency (MTPA) officials in rhino poaching in the province.
MTPA chief executive Charles Ndabeni implicated top officials in a report submitted to the former economic development and environmental affairs MEC Jabu Mahlangu.
The report has never been made public. – AENS
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