UNODC and INL Launch a Guidebook for Game Rangers
Pretoria, 20 September 2018 – A Guidebook that will help improve the quality of evidence available to financial investigators in wildlife crime incidences was launched today by the Secretariat of the Asset Recovery Inter-Agency Network – Southern Africa (ARINSA).
The manual produced by UNODC with the help of INL, aims to have the wildlife officers who respond to incidences of wildlife crime, know what to look for in order to follow the money chain driving wildlife crime.
“Intelligence and financial investigations are the only way to solve wildlife crimes. Following the money and not just catching the poachers, will stop wildlife crime,” said Mr JP Willemse from the ARINSA Secretariat. “Training the Rangers to ask the right questions will solve the crimes,” he added.
Law enforcement agents, prosecutors, rangers, financial investigators, wildlife crime experts and conservation managers from 14 countries in Southern and Eastern Africa gathered together to witness this event.
Often crime bosses at the top of the chain, go untouched and continue to cause damage while the “poachers” at the bottom of the chain are arrested. This Guidebook enables the First Responders to identify and preserve evidence that can be used by financial investigators to trace the money trail.
The Guidebook comes at a time when environmental issues are high on the agenda with the depletion of abalone and rhino populations in the Southern African region.
High on the agenda was the setting up of a regional training needs in the Southern and Eastern African countries. Delegates then put their heads together to come up with a regional strategy to integrate these training needs into draft country implementation plans to combat wildlife crime.
The delegates noted that the time to focus on the money behind wildlife crime was long overdue. This Guidebook, the first of its kind, will help to provide a solid foundation for financial investigations into the most important driver of wildlife crime through a process of “following the money chain”. By taking away their profits and unlawful assets, the crime syndicates will be hit where it hurts them most – in their pockets.
To download the guide please follow the link below.