Latest news about crime and security in South Africa. Information about the black market is collected from international organizations, intelligence reports, national security agencies and news articles.
The Ethiopia Embassy in Kenya stated that its citizens were detained in Kenya after being caught up in a human smuggling scheme.
The embassy reported that people were paying human smugglers $2,715 (50,000 Ethipoian Birr) to be smuggled from Ethiopia to South Africa. Instead, the smugglers were apprehended in Kenya by immigration officials.
Source: “Ethiopia: Embassy Working to Repatriate Ethiopian Victims of Trafficking,” allAfrica, February 26, 2013.
Wildlife protection organizations and the South African Government reported that 82 rhinos were killed by poachers in January 2013. In Kruger National Park in South Africa, 61 rhinos were killed. 14 poachers were arrested as well.
In 2012, a record 668 rhinos were killed by poachers in South Africa.
Source: Adam Vaughn, “WWF plans to use drones to protect wildlife,” Guardian, February 7, 2013.
The Tobacco Institute of Southern Africa stated that cigarette smuggling in South Africa causes up to $1.3 Billion (12 Billion South African Rand) in tax revenue losses.
People in South Africa will smoke up to 8 billion cigarettes that were sold on the black market. Smuggled cigarettes account for 30 percent of the entire tobacco market in the country.
Source: “Smuggled cigarettes cost R12bn in taxes,” fin24, November 5, 2012.
According to the sole license holder of underwear brand Jockey in South Africa, the company lost $2.2 Million (20 Million South African Rand) in sales to counterfeit underwear between 2007 and 2012.
A pair of fake Jockey underwear is sold for $0.50 (5 R) in the country, while the legitimate version costs $2.6 (22.95 R) in retail stores.
Source: Nompumelelo Magwaza, “Clothing sector fights surge in counterfeit products entering SA,” Independent Online, October 13, 2012.
A total of 1202 firearms that were owned by the police in South Africa have been stolen or lost between January 2011 and September 2012.
In 2011, a total of 885 police guns were reported stolen or lost. In 2012, police lost 317 firearms between January and August.
Out of the total firearms missing, 170 firearms have been recovered.
Source: “‘Police fueling illegal gun trade’,” Independent Online, September 27, 2012.
In the first six months of 2012, wildlife protection authorities have arrested 43 Asian nationals for rhino horn trafficking in South Africa. 24 were from Vietnam.
Despite having a large black market in rhino horns, there have been zero seizures of rhino horns in the country since 2008.
In 2011, at least 443 rhinos were killed in South Africa.
Source: Adam Vaughan, “Affluent Vietnamese driving rhino horn poaching in South Africa, report warns,” Guardian, July 23, 2012.
Between January 1 to March 28, 2012, poachers in South Africa killed 150 rhinos. In Kruger National Park alone, 87 rhinos were killed by poachers.
90 people in the country were arrested during the three month period for poaching activities.
Source: SAPA, “Poachers kill 150 rhino in 2012,” IOL News, March 29, 2012.
A record 443 rhinos were killed for their horns in South Africa in 2011, an increase from the 333 killed in 2010.
In the Kruger National Park alone, 244 rhinos were killed. Authorities killed 21 poachers and arrested 78 people in the area of the park during the year.Over 95 percent of the cases were believed to have involved poachers from neighboring Mozambique.
Source: Leon Marshall, “Record 443 Rhinos Killed by Poachers in South Africa in 2011,” National Geographic, Daily News, December 14, 2011.
According to a survey by StatsSA, 5.6 percent of households in South Africa reported being asked to pay a bribe to government officials between 2008 and 2010. Out of all the bribes asked to be paid, 52.8 percent of the requests were from traffic police with the bribes being used to avoid traffic fines.
Source: “Over half of bribes to traffic cops,” Times Live, November 24, 2011.
341 rhinos have been killed in South Africa in the first 10 months of 2011. In 2010, a total of 333 rhinos were killed. In 2000, 7 rhinos were poached and killed by wildlife smugglers.
Source: Tony Carnie, “Rhino toll the worst ever,” IOL News, November 3, 2011.
