ARREST OF ANOTHER POACHING KINGPIN SIGNALS CHANGE IN TANZANIA
(Posted 30th October 2015)
After the declaration of results from Tanzania’s presidential and parliamentary elections is East Africa’s largest country now counting down to the swearing in of their new president, Dr. John Magufuli. With the tainted Kikwete regime on the way out has the arrest yesterday of another ivory smuggling and poaching kingpin, one Boniface Matthew Mariango, aka as ‘Shetani’, the Kiswahili word for devil given conservationists in the country hope for a fresh start and a more sustained campaign against poaching under the incoming government.
His arrest is the second high profile apprehension by the relatively independent National and Transnational Serious Crime Unit Task Force, which has suddenly – with the Kikwete days numbered – sprung into serious action when they arrested a Chinese national a few weeks ago who allegedly masterminded one of the largest financing and smuggling syndicates for blood ivory.
According to sources in Tanzania was Mariango one of the most wanted poaching suspects, allegedly involved in running at least 15 rings across the country and was apprehended after a sustained manhunt for him. It is suspected that the arrest of the Chinese ‘Queen of Ivory’ may have led to her beginning to confess and provide clues about her conspirators and fellow criminals involved in what has turned Tanzania into an elephant killing field over the past years of the Kikwete presidency.
The outgoing president rose to notoriety when he presided over the slaughter of elephant with no action taken for years and instead of acting on former Minister Amb. Khamis Kagesheki’s list of 300 to suspects in government and the ruling party CCM prompting his removal from cabinet. Incoming President Elect Dr. Magufuli however is expected to have no such allegiances nor outstanding IOU’s towards that clique and will no doubt give the task force a free run to bring those involved in the poaching menace a free hand to arrest and prosecute them.
One particular source mentioned that more arrests are now imminent and the campaign against smugglers, financiers and poachers may gain added momentum just as soon as Dr. Magufuli is sworn in as Tanzania’s fifth president since independence.
