Maputo : Heartless Poacher finally sentenced for unspeakable crimes against wildlife

The defendant Chabane Aduge Assuba was convicted by the 10th Criminal Section of the Municipal Court of Maputo on Thursday for the slaughter of at least 42 lion, 20 elephant and four rhino, young and old, males and females, according to the charge sheet.

According to the charge sheet, the defendant was found in possession of pieces of prohibited species in his residence, including 14 lion skulls, 128 bundles of Lion tails, 88 lion claws, 57 kg of Lion bones divided into three bags, 55 pieces of ivory, 74 elephant bones and 24 lion jaws, all of which were seized during a search at his residence, located at Infulene neighborhood in administrative post Machava in Maputo province.

On December 5, 2022 the defendant was arrested in downtown Maputo in possession of over 9 kg of rhino horns, intended to be sold to citizens of Asian descent.

 Subsequently, a search was carried out at the defendant's residence, located in the Infulene neighborhood, administrative post of Machava, Maputo province, where 629.72 kg of prohibited species were seized.

All in all, as stated in the indictment, the rhino horns found in the defendant's possession on the day he was detained outside a hotel, as well as those stored in his residence, total 629.72 kg, are valued at close to 100 million meticais, as total market value. Thus, he is responsible for environmental crimes, which include crimes against wildlife and biodiversity, as well as the crime of money laundering.

According to the process, the defendant Chabane Assuba, before his arrest, was involved in selling seafood and smuggling vehicles. At the same time, he was a partner in a fictitious company called GB SERVICES, together with citizens identified by the names of Máquina Fernandes Niguilo and Lila Carlos Buramo Buramo.

Likewise, Chabane Assuba had relations with José Américo Maló Batsane, Sekou Sacko, of Senegalese nationality, Marcos Paulo, known as "Gogo", Ernesto Augusto Mathula, also referred to as "Nhanguen", who worked for Tiep Ta Quang, an implicated Vietnamese citizen in the trafficking of protected animal species. Chabane acted as an intermediary between the latter and Paulo Zucula Júnior, as well as between Zucula Júnior and Simon Ernesto Valoi, alias "Navarra", both of whom were also involved in the illegal sale of rhino horns, having been detained as part of the Process.

As the indictment alludes to, the defendant Chabane also established business relationships with citizens of Vietnamese and Chinese nationality, who engage in the illicit purchase and export of those species and their derivatives.

Regarding damages, the process alludes to the fact that we are facing a true ecosystem and ecological catastrophe in nature, since the defendant Chabane, together with the already detained Paulo Zucula Júnior and Simon Ernesto Valoi (Navarra), and other fugitives, are part of a criminal network involved in the illegal trade of protected and prohibited species. 

Their action resulted in the destruction of a generation that could continue to reproduce and ensure biodervisity . (RM)