Eight years behind bars for Northern Cape plant poacher

A 24-YEAR-old Northern Cape man has been sentenced to eight years of direct imprisonment after being caught with nearly 3,000 protected succulent plants in what authorities describe as a bold and illegal attempt to cash in on South Africa’s rare flora.

The Springbok Regional Court handed down the sentence recently, bringing to a close a case that dates back to December 2022. That’s when the Hawks’ Serious Organised Crime Investigation unit, acting on a tip-off, intercepted Hanro Owies near Garies, where he was reportedly en route to deliver a haul of Conophytum plants to an illicit buyer.

According to Hawks regional spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Tebogo Thebe, the meeting spot was a quiet stretch along the N7, but the buyer Owies was expecting turned out to be undercover law enforcement. He was arrested on the spot, and the full extent of the crime was revealed when officers uncovered 2,863 Conophytum succulents - a protected species under both national and provincial conservation laws - in his possession.

Owies was convicted on two counts: transporting and trading in protected plant species without a permit. The court imposed eight years’ direct imprisonment for each count, to run concurrently. Additionally, he was declared unfit to own a firearm.

The Northern Cape’s rare and slow-growing succulents are a magnet for poachers and traffickers who often smuggle them to collectors abroad, particularly in East Asia and Europe. Conservation authorities have long warned that illegal harvesting poses a serious threat to biodiversity in arid regions like Namaqualand.

The Hawks, who led the investigation, have welcomed the outcome as a victory in the fight against environmental crimes - sending a strong message to those who treat the Northern Cape’s natural heritage as a source of personal profit.

The Hawks’ provincial head in the Northern Cape, Major-General Steven Mabuela, commended the team for their swift response to the intelligence received.