The South African National Parks (SANParks) has announced that they are increasing surveillance at Kruger National Park (KNP) entry gates as part of the festive season anti-crime prevention.

A statement released by the group said more security measures have been put in place.

These include increasing spot checks of vehicles inside the park to check for, among others, park offences such as contraband and verification of identities as well as booking receipts of occupants inside vehicles.

The statement said that other technologies being implemented include vehicle number plate recognition, remote vehicle monitoring, radar surveillance as well as night flying with specialised infrared cameras.

Recent spate of snaring in parks

According to acting KNP managing executive Dr Danny Govender, these measures are necessitated by the recent spike in poaching, especially snaring and poisoning which is indiscriminate and kills any animal that gets in contact with those elements.

“There has been an increase in snares inside the park which have resulted in serious injuries to animals which necessitated the intervention of Veterinary Wildlife Services,” said Govender.

He said in addition to the normal ranger and security services patrols as well as the dedicated dog units with tracking hounds being deployed on poacher tracks; these will be enhanced during the festive season

Govender added that the SANParks Environmental Investigative Unit (ECI) will be joining forces with other law enforcement agencies in tackling criminals in adjoining villages.

These operations will be targeted at those supplying rifles, ammunition, and recruiting poachers to commit crime. These are also the next level of poachers who transport and sell onward to their buyers. The operations are assisted by community members who often give good tip offs to authorities which lead to arrests and convictions.

Success report

He said the ongoing collaboration with the Mozambican authorities is continuing to yield positive results with some of the elusive kingpins now behind bars.

“Our data on the rhino poaching has indicated a downward trend and we want to keep it that way, we have introduced smart camera technology systems at most hotspots; it has helped in the apprehension of suspected poachers and the confiscation of high calibre hunting rifles and ammunition,” said Govender.

Govender added that in the last quarter, from July to September 2022, a total of 10 suspected poachers were arrested and six firearms were confiscated.

Meanwhile, residents in the area have raised