This is an excerpt from an article written by Philani Nombembe and published online by TimesLive on 14 August, 2021
Authorities have recovered lion teeth and claws from a suspected illegal wildlife trader.
The Vietnamese man was arrested during raids in Bela-Bela and Pretoria after a four-month probe by analysts and wildlife investigators. The suspect was also arrested for illegal possession of a firearm.
A joint team comprised of the Green Scorpions from the department of environment, forestry and fisheries (Deff), the Limpopo department of economic development, environment and tourism, the Gauteng department of agriculture and rural development and SANParks conducted the raid on Thursday.
In a statement on Saturday, Deff said search and seizure warrants were “executed simultaneously at a Vietnamese-owned farm near Bela-Bela in Limpopo and at two storage units in Pretoria”.