Friday, March 29, 2024

Court sentences three Chinese Nationals to 5 years in jail for Rhino Horns possession

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The Chadiza Magistrate Court has sentenced three Chinese National and two Zambians to Five Years imprisonment for illegally being in possession of rhino horns.

Before Magistrate Fred Musaka was Wan Qian (31),Huang Qingzhon (42),Hi Qingmao (30),Lovemore Kamwendo (42) , and Oberty Simwajata (48) who were charged with one count of unlawful possession of prescribed trophy contrally to section 130(a) and 86(2) of Act No.14 of 2015 of the laws of Zambia

Facts before the court were that on 27th July 2017 all the Five accused persons in Chadiza of the Eastern Province of Zambia jointly and whilst acting together had in their possession prescribed trophy namely 25 pieces of rhino horns weighing 32.2kg without a certificate of ownership issued by the Director of National Parks and Wildlife.

The Accused were intercepted at Chanida Border Post by Zambia Revenue Authority Officers as they crossed into Zambia from Mozambique for being found in possession of suspected rhino horns and were later handed over the Department of National Parks and Wildlife.

In mitigation the five accused persons asked the court to exercise lenience on them as they were all family men who may subject their families to great suffering if they were sent to prison.

And in delivering judgment Magistrate Musaka said he took into consideration what the accused had presented in mitigation but that they accused had no right to be in possession of the rhino horns without the certificate of ownership and export permit from the Director of National Parks and Wildlife.

He said sending the five to prison would serve as a lesson to other would be offenders. The five were then sentenced to Five years imprisonment with effect from the date that they were arrested.

17 COMMENTS

  1. ….15 years in prison for slaughtering our Rhinos for their horns shud have been better and could have sent a severe warning to all those ‘choncholis’ that, these animals are OURS and ours for keeps

  2. They had 25 pieces of rhino horns (That is over 10 rhinos killed) and they are getting 5 years? shouldn’t they be locked in for 50 years?

    Why are we so kind with the Chinese? Remember other other Chinese who were counterfeiting Bata shoes in Lusaka and they were charged to pay about K1500 and they case was over?

    When Africans are arrested for being in possession of just 1 gram of narcotic drugs in China, they are sent to jail for 20 years.

    Please judges, dont be kind on the Chinese, they are horrible and racist people.

  3. 5 years is not enough, These criminals should’ve been sent to prison for 30 years minimum, to deter other would be poachers. Please, do not be too lenient, if you want to help save our endangered animals.

  4. The Chinese will get deported immediately but they will come back under different names, and jobs will be waiting for them…in the police reserve force.

    Meanwhile the Zambians jailed will do very hard time.

    Koswe is no good.

  5. When three Chinese are sentenced to prison, send 2000 Chinese back to their country as punishment. There were 20,000 Chinese in 2015 and this time around they must have doubled. That is why they are behaving foo.lish.ly

  6. Victor are you normal, you really need a psychological assessment because your ability to read and analyse an article is adsolutely nil. This is about rhino horn, if you are the minister for information as jay jau, spaka say you are really not intellectually capable of being in such a governmemt position.
    You contribute nothing by your bigoted and unreasoned posts. Can you please mature as a person .
    5 years is not enough for this offence but we have to be cognizant of what the penalties laid down in law are.
    What has happened to the rhino horn

  7. We have seen video’s of Zambians being brutally attacked by the Chinese in China for dating Chinese women. If a Zambia killed a Panda in China calls for instant execution and questions later. You have a leader who does not understand national issues or politics yet he is in State House right now boozing himself into an oblivion. Meanwhile you have people giving a 5 year jail sentence to people caught doing wildlife crimes instead of 15 years. Then again, Lungu and Kaizer Zulu were implicated a few years ago in dealing with rhino horn. Is there anything Lungu and his goons are not involved in that does not have corruption listed or advertised? They seem to be named in everything.

  8. Some decent High Court judge should call for the case file and review the sentence..before Kaiser Zulu makes money out of this….At least 10 yrs can’t be bad. If u compare with the harsh sentences given to Zambians for stu.pid offenses eg possession of 1gram of dobo…..

  9. They have swept all our hidden precious minerals,mukula and now animals are in trouble,I believe for these guys to be caught now they must have started a long time…
    I concur with ha bitcoin just to review the case and add some years atleast 1year per horn,so that those still in the bushes hunting should know that things are now not as easy as they thought….

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