Pangolin sellers busted in Pretoria police trap denied bail
Four people were arrested by the Boschkop police during the street sale of an endangered pangolin.
A man and a woman – who were arrested for selling a pangolin, an endangered species – remained behind bars after they were denied bail by the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court on Monday.
The duo’s case was postponed for further investigations, according to Boschkop police spokesperson, sergeant Yeroboam Mbatsane.
They will be back in court on April 22 for a formal bail application.
John Ndou (34) and Hlamalani Masekela (46) were arrested on Friday, April 9, during a police trap.
Initially, Mbatsane said the state would oppose a bail application until the suspects’ statuses, including pending cases, previous convictions and risk profiles were established.
Mbatsane said the suspects were arrested in Silverlakes after police received information from a member of the public that a pangolin had been offered for sale.
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The police then set a trap for the suspects working with the informant.
“An agent [a member of the public] was introduced and successfully infiltrated as a potential buyer.
“A meeting was scheduled to conclude the transaction in Silverlakes in Tshwane,” Mbatsane said.
When the agent arrived at the selling point, he met Ndou, who hails from Limpopo. Masekela arrived carrying a bag in which a pangolin was found when the bag was inspected, Mbatsane said.
The man and woman were arrested for contravention of section 57 (1) of the National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act of 2004.
Aside from the two, two other suspects were arrested in a separate R50 000 street sale of a pangolin.
Mbatsane said the two suspects from Tembisa were arrested in Silverlakes the following day as accomplices in the case.
They were also expected to appear in court this week.
The female pangolin, weighing 3.84kg, was taken to the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital for treatment.
Mbatsane said although the endangered animals were found in provinces such as Limpopo, Mpumalanga and parts of Zimbabwe, it was not yet clear where the suspects had obtained the pangolin in this case.
While the illegal selling of pangolins remains “very problematic” in the region, Mbatsane said the police had arrested suspects in 90% of reported cases.
The Cullinan stock theft and endangered species unit, Tshwane K9 unit, Benoni K9 unit, the Department of Environmental Affairs’ “Green Scorpions” and a non-profit organisation ABWG were all involved in the arrests.
The average selling price for the endangered animal is R400 000.
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