ACORNHOEK – Administrative chaos and disorder led to the umpteenth postponement of the state’s case against alleged rhino poaching kingpin, Mr Big Joe Nyalungu and his co-accused.
Nyalungu, a former warrant officer with the South African Police Service, was arrested on December 12, 2011 in Middelburg. He and Const Conrad Nkuna, who was stationed at Hazyview, were on their way back to Middelburg from Gauteng when they were pulled over by police. They had
R3 280 800 cash on them and a bag containing the DNA of rhino was also found in his possession. It is suspected that they had sold rhino horn in Gauteng.
The DNA contained in the bag matched that of a rhino that was poached in the Stolsnek area of the Kruger National Park (KNP) earlier that year. Mr Elijah Ngobeni was arrested in connection with the poaching on December 20, 2011.
Nyalungu and Nkuna were released on bail and approached by undercover policemen on February 27, 2012. Two rhino horns were apparently sold to Nyalungu for R346 000. A Vietnamese national, Mr Ngoc Cuong Pham, was arrested in Bedfordview in May 2012 with 10 rhino horns, R4 million cash and an elephant tusk in his possession. Two of the horns were positively identified as those allegedly sold to Nyalungu during that undercover police operation.
Pham’s wife, Ms Lan Anh Nguyen, was one of the co-accused. Nyalungu apparently sold the horns to her. Mr Pham has since pleaded guilty and was sentenced to a R1-million fine and five years’ imprisonment for possession of and dealing in rhino horn in the Nelspruit Regional Court. He was also found guilty of racketeering for which he was sentenced to another five years’ imprisonment, of which three were suspended for five years.
On March 2, 2012, undercover policemen allegedly sold four horns to Nyalungu for R370 000 and he was rearrested.
Mr Timothy Ngcobe was apprehended during the same transaction. Const Thabang Shakoane, a policeman from Kaapmuiden Police Station who was present during this transaction, was arrested in September that year on rhino-poaching related charges.
Detectives went to Nyalungu’s home in Mkhuhlu where various suspected stolen items were seized and Messrs Happy Sello Zitha, David Lazarus Singanque, Calisto Joe Gulaigu Massoda, Zeka Fransisco Mindu Santos, Checo Someone Cassa and Sam Mashaba were also taken into custody.
The trial against all of the accused was scheduled to resume in the Mhala Magistrate’s Court on Monday. When the state prosecutor Ms Ansie Venter called the accused, five of them did not turn up as the police had neglected to transport them from Mbombela’s prison to court.
When they were confronted with their failure, they averred that they forgot. According to a reliable source, the names of the five accused were the first five names on their list of prisoners that had to be transported on Monday.
To add insult to injury, Nyalungu’s legal representative, Mr Pottie Potgieter, informed court that he could not make it to the day’s court proceedings.
One of the accused discontinued his attorney’s mandate and requested a postponement to provide his new attorney with instructions.
The Regional Court president has authorised that the case may be transferred from Mhlala’s court to the Nelspruit Regional Court. This would be confirmed in the Nelspruit Regional Court yesterday.
Defence attorney Mr Riaan Louw placed his disappointment at the postponement on record and Venter said that it delayed justice and did not serve the interests of the community.
Magistrate Ms Elmarie Theron postponed the case to the Nelspruit Regional Court where it resumed yesterday. At the time of going to press, the accused had not yet appeared in court.
