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Arrested traffickers at Douala court.
Arrested traffickers at Douala court.
On Thursday November 11, two suspects shall be standing trial at the Bonanjo Court of First Instance on charges of unlawful possession, circulation and sale of pangolin scales – a totally protected wildlife species - following their arrest by the judicial police in Douala. The case shall be at its 5th hearing and during the last hearing, the judge refused to release the car that was impounded as the traffickers attempted to load bags of pangolin scales into the car at a popular travelling agency in Douala.
The pair were arrested at the bus station when police found them trying to load bags full with pangolin scales in the early hours of the morning of May 24, 2019. The bags that weighed a total 237kg had just been offloaded from a bus that left Yaounde and arrived Douala in the night while police were present at the bus station doing some duty. When the bus arrived they immediately recognized that the bags contained illegal products. They waited patiently for the owner to come collect the bags and the wait wasn’t for too long. A man in his late thirties arrived in a car at the bus station and was later assisted in the loading of the bags into the car by a 46-year-old man.
The police wasted no time, moved in swiftly and stopped the pair before they could attempt any moves. The car they used was also impounded. Prior investigations show the scales were heading to Nigeria and the pair had been regularly involved in such transactions, supplying pangolin scales to Nigeria. When the court holds next week, the parties are expected to submit their pleadings and if the suspects are found guilty they may face up to 3 years in prison and or a fine of up to 10 million CFA francs as stipulated by the 1994 wildlife law.
The application of proper court proceedings and rulings is a vital component of the conservation formula in the country as it dissuades traffickers from engaging in a business they know would be perilous. According to those who work in wildlife law enforcement, for this to work, court rulings must be commensurate to the punishment. Just recently at the very court where the hearing shall be taking place, a similar matter just ended.
In 2017 the mobile unit of the police in Douala arrested Adamu Ibrahim, Upah Macmillan and Akenji Ebenezer with 158 ivory tusks, 26 bags of pangolin scales, 124 heads of African grey parrots and 1394 parrot feathers. A long trial ensued but was completed on October 30 with the court giving the convicted traffickers a 6-month suspended sentence for 3 years and this was further compounded by the fact that they were roaming free while the trial was in process. Wildlife officials were assisted in the follow up of the cases by LAGA, an international organization specialized in wildlife law enforcement.