Soldiers arrested for poaching elephants

Six soldiers from the Rapid Intervention Battalion (BIR) have been arrested and are in military custody in Yaoundé for the alleged involvement in acts of poaching and killing of elephants at the Sangha reserve in the East of Cameroon.

According to reports, these soldiers would be summoned before the military tribunal to answer serious charges of poaching and trafficking of protected animal species.

During a routine check a few days ago, military forces discovered a parked cargo truck containing more than 100 elephant tusks with close to 1000 ammunitions at the Mouloundou locality (East) near the Congo border, while the traffickers had gone ahead to Yaoundé in to sell their loot.

The arrest of the driver and his acolyte led to the discovery of the military men’s involvement in the hunt. The arrested soldiers were posted on the site two years ago, by the authorities, to ensure security around the Sangha reserve to protect endangered species including elephants, after poaching activities had reached worrying numbers.

In an investigation, some military personnel were involved in acts of poaching and trafficking of the tusks of elephants, but this will be up to the military court to prove it.

This is a less complex situation since it was found out that the ammunitions seized belonged to the Cameroonian army.