Sundaymail Editor
Thupeyo Muleya
Beitbridge Bureau
TWO Zimbabwean men and their South African counterpart were each jailed for five years after they were arrested while hunting for a rhino in Limpopo province, South Africa.
The trio were busted by alert security officials, who recovered a firearm, ammunition and one knife in the Steilloop area in March last year.
Limpopo police spokesperson Lt-Col Stephen Thakeng said Zimbabweans Kholwani Mwembe (40) and Emmanuel Marombedze (36), as well as South African Stephen Tshoeu (49) pleaded guilty in the Mahwelereng Regional Court to charges of conspiracy to commit rhino poaching, unlawful possession of a firearm and unlawful possession of ammunition.
“They were sentenced as follows, Count 1: Conspiracy to commit a crime of rhino poaching — five years imprisonment or a fine of R5 000; Count 2: Possession of a firearm without a licence — four years imprisonment or a fine of R4 000; and Count 3: Possession of ammunition without a permit — two years imprisonment or a fine of R2 000. The sentences will run concurrently with Count 1,” said Lt Col Thakeng.
He said on March 22, 2024, at approximately 11pm, members of the Limpopo Provincial Stock Theft and Endangered Species Unit (STES), in collaboration with private security personnel and SANParks officials, conducted a Section 252A operation targeting suspected rhino poachers in the Steilloop area under the Gilead policing jurisdiction in the Waterberg district.
During the operation, he said, a suspicious vehicle was identified and stopped.
Subsequently, Mwembe, Marombedze and Tshoeu were arrested, leading to the recovery of one .308 caliber firearm, reported stolen in Alldays in May 2023, seven .308 rounds of ammunition, one knife and one silencer.
A Honda Jazz, bearing Gauteng registration, was also confiscated.
“On February 3, 2025, the three accused —Kholwani Mwembe (40), a Zimbabwean national; Emmanuel Marombedze (36), a Zimbabwean national; and Stephen Tshoeu (49), a South African citizen — pleaded guilty in the Mahwelereng Regional Court to charges of conspiracy to commit rhino poaching, unlawful possession of a firearm and unlawful possession of ammunition. They were convicted and sent to prison on March 31,” said Lt-Col Thakeng.
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