News

Joint operation with NCS leads to arrest of fugitive suspected of involvement in major wildlife seizure of January 2021

Joint operation with NCS leads to arrest of fugitive suspected of involvement in major wildlife seizure of January 2021

In a joint intelligence-led operation with the Wildlife Justice Commission, the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) Special Wildlife Office and the Enforcement Team has arrested Mr Felix Maiva on 28 September. Mr Maiva was arrested in connection with the January 2021 seizure of illegal wildlife products from Apapa Port, Nigeria, which was bound for Haiphong, Vietnam.

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The BBC reveals the story of how the WJC outwitted and closed in on wildlife traffickers in Nigeria

The BBC reveals the story of how the WJC outwitted and closed in on wildlife traffickers in Nigeria

Today, the BBC has published a special report highlighting the work of the Wildlife Justice Commission in Nigeria and the successes it has achieved in disrupting the trafficking of wildlife from the country, in partnership with the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS). The report features an interview with the Wildlife Justice Commission’s Director of Programs Steve Carmody and Van, one of our female undercovers.

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Three Vietnamese and one Guinean charged with wildlife trafficking in Nigeria convicted and sentenced to six years imprisonment or fine payments

Three Vietnamese and one Guinean charged with wildlife trafficking in Nigeria convicted and sentenced to six years imprisonment or fine payments

On Wednesday 19 July, the trial of three Vietnamese and one Guinean national accused of trafficking 7.1 tonnes of pangolin scales and 850 kgs of ivory concluded in Nigeria with the conviction of the four accused. The judge of the Federal High Court of Nigeria in Lagos sentenced the accused to six years of imprisonment each or payment of fines in lieu of imprisonment.

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The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission targets an international pangolin scale trafficking syndicate and corrupt law enforcement with the support of the Wildlife Justice Commission

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission targets an international pangolin scale trafficking syndicate and corrupt law enforcement with the support of the Wildlife Justice Commission

Last week, in Port Klang, Malaysia, the Wildlife Justice Commission supported the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in an operation targeting corrupt customs and other members of an international wildlife trafficking network with the support of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Thailand.

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New report sheds light on the key role of corruption in enabling wildlife crime

New report sheds light on the key role of corruption in enabling wildlife crime

Since the creation of the Wildlife Justice Commission in 2015, a constant that has been observed in all intelligence-led investigations into wildlife trafficking across the globe is the role of corruption in enabling this form of organised crime. Corruption is the air that wildlife crime breathes; it is one of the key enablers of widespread and large-scale wildlife trafficking and one of the biggest obstacles to effective law enforcement.

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The Wildlife Justice Commission welcomes 3 new funding partners for our mission of fighting transnational organised wildlife crime

The Wildlife Justice Commission welcomes 3 new funding partners for our mission of fighting transnational organised wildlife crime

We are excited to announce three new partnerships with respected funders, who share the Wildlife Justice Commission’s vision of a world without wildlife crime. Joining our list of partners are the UK Government, through the Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund, the Swedish Postcode Foundation, and the Robert H.N. Ho Family Foundation Global.

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CCPCJ Panel discussion promotes the use of joint investigations and special investigative techniques to address environmental crime

CCPCJ Panel discussion promotes the use of joint investigations and special investigative techniques to address environmental crime

The Wildlife Justice Commission organised a hybrid event, focusing on promoting the effective use of the provisions under the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) and United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) on joint investigations and special investigative techniques to address environmental crimes and the corruption that enables them, on the sidelines of the 32nd Session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ).

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The Wildlife Justice Commission publishes 2022 Annual Report

The Wildlife Justice Commission publishes 2022 Annual Report

2022 was our most successful year since our founding in 2015. Our intelligence-led approach allowed us to secure major arrests in, amongst others, Nigeria, Mozambique and Thailand, to deepen our understanding of the criminal dynamics, and to share our expertise with law enforcement, policy makers, and practitioners across the globe.

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Reflecting on 8 years of the Wildlife Justice Commission

Reflecting on 8 years of the Wildlife Justice Commission

This month marks our 8th anniversary. A good moment to reflect on how it all started in 2015: five staff members, one donor, two cases and an ambitious strategy to hold governments accountable for failing to address wildlife crime occurring in their own countries, through the mechanism of a Public Hearing in the City of Peace and Justice, The Hague.

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Advocating for stronger anti-corruption frameworks to protect the environment and wildlife at the 20th IACC

Advocating for stronger anti-corruption frameworks to protect the environment and wildlife at the 20th IACC

Corruption is a key enabler of environmental crime, including wildlife crime, and the Wildlife Justice Commission is committed to promoting solutions to tackle corruption. We were present at the 20th International Anti-Corruption Conference (IACC) in Washington DC and organised a workshop on behalf of the UNCAC Coalition’s Environmental Crime and Corruption Working Group.

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Winning big against wildlife crime in 2022

Winning big against wildlife crime in 2022

As the Covid-19 pandemic slowly subsided and borders opened this year, criminal networks went back to business as usual, resulting in an increase in poaching and trafficking of wildlife and as a result, an increase of seizures. In response, the Wildlife Justice Commission stepped up its fight against transnational organised wildlife crime.

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Steve Carmody presenting at CITES CoP19

Speaking for Wildlife Justice at CITES CoP19

The chance to afford greater protection to nearly six hundred species of wildlife was the focus of this year’s CITES CoP19 (Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora at the nineteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties), which took place in Panama this month.

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Wildlife Kingpin the rise and fall of Ah Nam podcast cover

Wildlife Kingpin: The rise and fall of Ah Nam

From the Wildlife Justice Commission comes the first-ever in-depth analysis of a real-life investigation into the dark underbelly of wildlife crime. Our new original podcast series: “Wildlife kingpin: the rise and fall of Ah Nam”, follows a team of investigators on the hunt for one of Asia’s biggest traffickers of elephant and rhino products.

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Ah Nam: The Downfall of Vietnam’s Wolf of Wall Street

Ah Nam: The Downfall of Vietnam’s Wolf of Wall Street

The Wildlife Justice Commission has published a report on the rise and fall of one of Vietnam’s biggest wildlife traffickers. Nguyen Van Nam, referred to in the report as Ah Nam, was the focus of a Wildlife Justice Commission investigation from 2016 until 2019.

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World Rhino Day 2022: Putting rhinos back on the radar

World Rhino Day 2022: Putting rhinos back on the radar

Law enforcement agencies globally must address rhino horn trafficking as a form of transnational organised crime along with an increased focus on the higher level actors in the rhino horn supply chain. This was the key message that emerged from a joint webinar hosted by WWF South Africa and the Wildlife Justice Commission to mark World Rhino Day 2022.

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Arrest of Major rhino poaching trafficker in Mozambique

Arrest of Major rhino poaching trafficker in Mozambique

On 27 July 2022, the Wildlife Justice Commission provided support to the Serviço Nacional de Investigação Criminal (SERNIC) during the arrest of a well-known rhino horn trafficker, Simon Valoyi, also known as Navara. The Wildlife Justice Commission acknowledges the outstanding work of SERNIC in bringing this suspect to justice.

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Prosecutors and forestry officials in Lao PDR receive training to step up the fight against wildlife crime

Prosecutors and forestry officials in Lao PDR receive training to step up the fight against wildlife crime

To strengthen the legal approach to wildlife crime in the Golden Triangle Region, the Wildlife Justice Commission, in collaboration with WWF, provided a training to local prosecutors and forestry officials in Lao PDR to improve their knowledge base and introduce them to a set of techniques that would allow for more efficient prosecution of wildlife crime.

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Winning big against wildlife crime in 2021

Winning big against wildlife crime in 2021

As an organisation, 2021 was our most successful year since our founding in 2015. Much of our efforts in previous years came to fruition, and we played a crucial role in major arrests in Thailand and Nigeria.

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World Pangolin Day 2018

World Pangolin Day 2018

Solitary, shy, elusive and nocturnal, pangolins are rarely observed in the wild to the point that their population estimates are not clear, although conservationists do know that it is rapidly declining.

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Operation Phoenix - Wildlife trafficking Vietnam

Key Findings: Operation Phoenix

The document presents the key findings or our 18-months investigation into the village of Nhi Khe, Viet Nam. It also discusses the outcome of efforts we undertook to establish a dialogue with the governments of Viet Nam and China and outlines the steps we took on the path of activating justice against the criminal network that our team identified.

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World Rhino Day

World Rhino Day

It is not looking good for Rhinoceros. It is calculated that over 500,000 of these gentle giants roamed in the wild across Africa and Asia at the beginning of the 20th century.

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World Elephant Day

World Elephant Day

Distinctive, intelligent and sensitive, socially complex and so powerful but yet so kind, elephants are part of our global heritage.

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International Turtle Day

International Turtle Day

A day to celebrate turtles – both freshwater and marine species – and tortoises, raise awareness about the endangered species and encourage action to be taken to preserve them.

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