This archive report was first published on 6 September 2019.
Authorities in Tanzania have made a significant breakthrough in the fight against ivory trafficking, with the arrest of a Tanzanian man found in possession of a large stash of ivory.
According to Minister of Natural Resources Hamisi Kigwangalla, the suspect had been sought by authorities since 2016 and was arrested along with seven alleged accomplices on Tuesday.
The ivory, estimated to come from around 117 elephants, included 338 pieces of elephant tusk and 75 whole tusks, which are believed to have originated from Tanzania and Mozambique.
"Until his arrest on Tuesday, he was unable to move this stock, because we have become extremely vigilant," said Kigwangalla.
As part of efforts to combat poaching, Kigwangalla has given a one-month grace period for anyone in possession of elephant tusks to hand them in to authorities without facing prosecution.
Since 2016, over 1,000 poachers have been arrested in Tanzania, where the elephant population has plummeted by 60 percent between 2009 and 2014 due to poaching.
Notably, in February, a Tanzanian court sentenced Chinese citizen Yang Fenlan, known as the "Ivory Queen," to 15 years in jail for her role in trafficking tusks from over 400 elephants.
According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the African elephant population has fallen by 110,000 over the past decade to just 415,000 animals, with demand in Asia driving the slaughter for ivory used in jewellery and ornamentation.
