TWO men from Filabusi, Matabeleland South province, have been sentenced to nine years each in jail after being convicted of illegally
possessing a pangolin valued at US$5 000.
Mayibongwe Ndlovu (27) and John Wax (25) were convicted by Bulawayo regional magistrate Sibonginkosi Mkandala after they were found in possession of a live pangolin, a specially protected species under the Parks and Wildlife Act.
Both had pleaded not guilty.
The court was told that on October 22, 2025 detectives from the CID Minerals, Flora and Fauna Unit were tipped that the two were seeking a buyer for a live pangolin in Filabusi.
Detectives posed as buyers and arranged to meet the two in Bulawayo, where they were arrested after producing the animal from a sack without a valid permit.
The pangolin was later identified by an ecologist as a Temminck’s ground pangolin, a strictly protected species.
A police report was made leading to the arrest of Ndlovu and Wax.
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