Central SA
NW rhino poaching remains concern─── LUCKY NKUYANE 09:08 Sat, 27 Apr 2019
Private game farm owners and the government remain concerned about rhino poaching in North West after two suspected poachers were recently arrested.
Petrus Steyn and Clive Melville appeared in court on Friday after they were found in possession of 167 rhino horns in the Hartbeespoortdam area.
Private game owners and government say poaching and the growing demand for lion skin and bones, amongst others, in local traditional medicines and Asian markets, pose a significant threat.
Hawks spokesperson in the province, Tlangelani Rikhotso, says Steyn was released on R20 000 bail and Melville on R100 000 bail by the Brits Magistrate’s Court.
Rikhotso says the duo’s next court appearance will be on 12 July 2019 after the case was postponed for further investigation.
Steyn and Melville appeared in the North West court this week, following their arrest by the Hawks last Saturday.
Meanwhile, private lion breeders say while an export quota was established to reduce exports of lion bones in 2017, poaching of captive lions has instead persisted and doubled, with at least 31 lions killed between June 2017 and May of 2018.
