Zimbabwe court refuses to drop charges against 7 Chinese caught with rhino horns
Source: Zimbabwe court refuses to drop charges against 7 Chinese caught with rhino horns – France24
Hwange (Zimbabwe) (AFP) – Seven Chinese nationals being held in a Zimbabwe jail for money laundering and unlawful possession of rhino horn on Thursday lost their legal bid to have their charges dropped.
They were arrested on December 23 with more than 20 kilograms (44 lbs) of rhino horn pieces worth nearly a million US dollars.
A magistrate in the northern resort town of Hwange dismissed an application by the seven unemployed Chinese nationals to have the charges thrown out.
Their lawyer had argued the prosecution had failed to prove there was a case to answer.
The seven were ordered to return to court on March 19.
Acting on a tip-off, police detectives found the rhino horn stashed in a mattress, plastic bags and in boxes at a house in the nearby town of Victoria Falls.
Rhino horns are highly coveted in some Asian countries such as China and Vietnam, where they have fetched up to $60,000 per kilogramme, for their supposed medicinal qualities.
The demand has fuelled a boom in poaching and trafficking in Africa.
COMMENTS
Well done to that Magistrate -+ at last someone willingb to stand up to the traffickers ravaging Zimbabwe’ wildlife, and decimating the dwindling rhino population!
Death sentence please! Unemployed Chinese? Holy smoke what is happening in Zimbabwe.
A round of applause to the brave magistrate,and hope there is light for him/her at the end of the tunnel.
if it was china and they were caught they would be put to death . i say the same should happen now . to send a sign to all poachers and there masters . that africa has had enough of them raping the wild life .
Poaching for Rhino horns? Thir punishment should be to have all their teeth removed, then put in jail for life, and made to eat meat.