A 53-year-old man, Vincent Eric Lengwati, was on Wednesday fined R2 500 after he pleaded guilty to being in possession of monkey and hyena meat, three dried crocodile skins and a fresh, unskinned crocodile carcass.

The carcass was found inside a refrigerator at Dumphries C near Thulamahashe outside Bushbuckridge in Mpumalanga.
Lengwati paid the fee as an admission of guilt.

According to the police, members of the public notified the authorities of the man’s stash. Upon arrival at the scene, Mhala SAPS officers and Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency members discovered the contraband items.

Lengwati was arrested for contravention of Section 27, Act 10 – 1998 of the Mpumalanga Nature Conservation Act, which prohibits the receipt, possession or handling of dead game.

Mpumalanga police commissioner Lieutenant General Semakaleng Manamela warns members of the public to refrain from breaking the law and encourages citizens to help conserve nature for future generations.

“Our concern is that some of these wild animals, like certain parts of the crocodile, could be very poisonous to human beings. We caution the public against hunting or being in possession of these species,” Manamela says.