Man arrested for illegal selling of owls
ALSO READ: Poacher killed in Kruger National Park shootout
The Hawks were alerted by Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency (MPTA) officials, and a joint operation was conducted. The suspect was found red-handed with the owls, without a permit.
A Nissan light delivery vehicle that was used to transport the wildlife was seized by the Hawks. The birds were handed safely over to the MPTA.
ALSO READ: Rehabilitated Kruger National Park vultures head back home
The suspect is expected to appear in the Nelspruit Magistrate's Court on Tuesday, August 15, on charges relating to the Mpumalanga Nature Conservation Act: keeping or conveyance of live game.
The Mpumalanga acting provincial head of the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, Brigadier Danie Hall, said wildlife is part of our heritage and we have a duty to protect it. He urges the public to report incidents of this nature to the authorities.
'When we take care of our wildlife, we safeguard our heritage for future generations,' he concluded.
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IOL News
2 hours ago
- IOL News
PAGAD Fugitive, captured after 8 years as police seize 23 illegal firearms in Western Cape
PAGAD fugitive Faizel Felix has been on the run for an illegal firearm case for the past eight years. Image: HAWKS As the Western Cape hailed the confiscation of 23 firearms amid gang violence including 13 in Mitchells Plain, PAGAD fugitive Faizel Felix who evaded authorities for years has been apprehended. Felix is no stranger to the courts, after he also made headlines in 2001, when he was accused of being behind a motorbike bomb explosion in front of the Wynberg Magistrates' Court but could never be prosecuted or linked because there were no state witnesses left to testify against him. The efforts behind his successful arrest follows the work done by the Hawks Crimes Against the State (CATs) team's efforts. Felix made an appearance at the Wynberg Magistrates' Court on Monday, eight years after he evaded the long alarm of the law. His case comes hours after, MEC for Police Oversight and Community Safety, Anroux Marais confirmed that 23 firearms were confiscated, 13 of which were found in Mitchell's Plain. According to Fight Against Crime SA's (FACSA) database, 52 shooting incidents were reported in the WC between 11 and 13 July, with 13 people shot, seven fatalities and nearly 32 affected areas, with hotspots such as Elsies River, Tafelsig, Bishop Lavis and others. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. 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Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ The Hawks spokesperson, Warrant Officer, Zinzi Hani said Felix had evaded court appearances since 2016. 'Faizel Felix (52), a member of People Against Gangsterism and Drugs (PAGAD) who previously absconded from court facing a charge of illegal possession of a firearm has briefly appeared in court today." 'His appearance comes after he was arrested in Wynberg earlier today by the Hawks Crimes Against the State (CATS) team, Western Cape on a warrant of arrest which was issued in 2016. 'Felix has been on the run for the past 8 years. 'It is reported that Felix was arrested on August 19 2015, for the illegal possession of a firearm by the Special Investigating Group for the City of Cape Town, thereafter the matter was referred to the Hawks for further probing. 'His non-attendance led to the court issuing a warrant for his arrest and subsequently his arrest today. 'The case is ongoing, with the man's next court appearance scheduled for July 17nat the Wynberg Regional Court. Felix remains in custody.' Marais spokesperson, Kurt Nefdt confirmed more than 20 firearms were confiscated. The success comes after sporadic shootings in the Cape including Mitchells Plain where five people were killed and seven wounded in a matter of hours on July 3 and another mass shooting in Bishop Lavis at the weekend. 'I can confirm that there have been another five firearms confiscated since our last media release. Two firearms were confiscated in Bishop Lavis following the recent mass murder( not confirmed if it is linked to the incident), one in Kuils River and another two in the Somerset West area. I must mention that these figures change often as intensified operations to clamp down on illegal guns and ammunition are ongoing,' said Nefdt. According to Gun Free SA's Researcher and Analyst, Claire Taylor, more than 8000 guns have been stolen since 2023: 'In 2023/24 alone, civilians reported losing or having 8,452 guns stolen - that's 23 guns every single day." Lynn Philipps of the Cape Flats Safety Forum said they applauded the successes but called for an inquiry after more than 30 firearms vanished from the Mitchell's Plain Police Station since 2017. 'How many people were innocently caught in the crossfires or shot with these stolen firearms retrieved thus far?' she said. A Consultative meeting of faith leaders and civic organizations such as the Muslim Judicial Council (MJC) President Sheikh Fataar, Reverend Rodney Whiteman of the Western Province Council of Churches and Dr Llewellyn MacMaster, chairperson of the Cape Crime Crisis Coalition, addressing gang violence on Wednesday. Pagad did not respond by the time of deadline on Monday. Get your news on the go, click here to join the Cape Argus News WhatsApp channel. Cape Argus
Daily Maverick
3 hours ago
- Daily Maverick
Fugutive Pagad member finally arrested after eight-year manhunt
Police arrested Pagad member Faizel Felix on Monday after he had evaded gun charges for eight years. According to sources close to the case, the arrest signals that police are serious about combatting vigilantism. Faizel Felix, 52, who faces a charge of the illegal possession of a firearm, is back in custody after previously absconding from court and being on the run for eight years. On 14 July 2025, Felix was nabbed by the Hawks' Crimes Against the State team in the Western Cape on a warrant of arrest issued in 2016. Elaborating on the case, Hawks spokesperson Zinzi Hani said Felix was arrested on 19 August 2015 by the City of Cape Town's Special Investigating Group for the illegal possession of a firearm. The matter was then referred to the Hawks for further investigation. 'Felix appeared in the Wynberg Magistrate's Court for the illegal possession of a firearm. He was granted bail. He disappeared and never attended court again. His non-attendance led to the court issuing a warrant for his arrest and subsequently his arrest on Monday, 14 July 2025,' she said. The vigilante group Research by the Institute for Security Studies, titled 'Vigilantism v. The State: A case study of the rise and fall of Pagad, 1996-2000' states that Pagad started as a movement against gangsterism and drugs but led to vigilantes using pipe bombs and firearms. The report further states that Pagad evolved rapidly into an organisation with a political agenda, purging dissenters, intimidating the Muslim establishment, as well as liberal and feminist Muslims, and attacking police, prosecutors and judges. One of their most heinous crimes occurred on 4 August 1996, when notorious Hard Livings gang leader Rashied Staggie was publicly lynched and set ablaze with petrol by a Pagad mob outside his house in Salt River. Felix's first run-in with the law was in 2001 when he was accused of being behind a motorbike explosion in front of the Wynberg Magistrate's Court. Days before Felix's bail application, the main witness, Ashraf Saban, was murdered. He could not be prosecuted because there were no state witnesses left to testify against him and all charges relating to the explosion were withdrawn. Back then, prosecutor Eunice Grey stated that the firearm used in his murder was the same one used to shoot Ebrahim Gallie, a key witness in the State's case against Ebrahim Jeneker. Jeneker, Abdullah Maansdorp and Moegamat Isaacs, former members of Pagad, were released on parole in November 2020 after serving 21 years for six murders in 1999. Not too late for justice A former police officer who infiltrated Pagad at the height of its reign of terror spoke to Daily Maverick on condition of anonymity. A criminologist close to the case also spoke to Daily Maverick on the condition of anonymity. The pair were concerned about the ongoing existence of Pagad in areas such as the gang-ravaged Mitchells Plain. 'Whether it is eight or 20 years, this kind of crime can't escape accountability because time has lapsed,' said the former officer on the charges against Felix. Both the criminologist and former officer said Felix must be held to account. 'There is an emergence of vigilante tendencies in the country, because people are frustrated with the police. One must show when you engage in that kind of activity, then you will be held accountable, whether it is after five or 16 years,' the pair said. The former officer said Pagad appeared to be gaining momentum in Mitchells Plain, stating that it was understandable given the challenges with policing in the area. According to the SAPS fourth quarter crime statistics of the 2024-2025 financial year, from January 2025 to March 2025 there were 319 murders perpetrated due to vigilantism. The leading provinces were Eastern Cape (70), Gauteng (69) and Western Cape (64). 'There are townships in the Western Cape and other parts of the country where people are turning to vigilantism because they are frustrated with the police. In that sense, Pagad is not exceptional. 'When you have a police service that refuses to do what it must do, which is to deal with crime, then you have that kind of crime,' the former officer said. He added that when Pagad initially emerged in 1995/96, the counter-argument to vigilantism was that there was a new government and new Constitution and they must have a chance to deal with crime. 'Now fast forward 30 years later, the police have failed. The government has failed dismally in dealing with crime, it has not shown seriousness in dealing with crime. 'You can't deal with these crimes by appointing commission upon commission of inquiry. Now the ordinary person in Manenberg, Lavender Hill, Gauteng and other parts of the country is sitting there and they are saying, 'President Cyril Ramaphosa is appointing another commission; we are dying here because of crime, and our children are infected with drugs; no we are going to do our own thing,'' he told Daily Maverick. Pagad distances itself In a statement, Pagad national coordinator Haroon Orrie distanced the group from Felix and said calling him a member was a 'blatant misrepresentation'. 'We have, since 2015 to the present day, asserted categorically, and very publicly, that a group of former members of Pagad have been expelled from the organisation, due to their contravention of the objects, policies and discipline of Pagad. They have formed a separate splinter group, referring to themselves as the 'G-Force'. Faizel Felix is a member of this G-Force. He is not a member of Pagad,' said Orrie. 'Pagad has embarked on processes to prohibit this splinter group from using and operating under the name of Pagad. This splinter group has been implicated in a range of illegal activities.'
The South African
4 hours ago
- The South African
Paige Bell's GoFundMe page donations pass R1 million mark
The GoFundMe page set up to help raise funds to ease the financial burden faced by South African stewardess Paige Bell's family has passed the R1 million mark. At the time of publishing, the page had raised $56 478 (R1 008 750), which represents 94% of the goal of raising $60 000. Bell was murdered aboard a £9.5 million superyacht in the Bahamas by a Mexican co-worker earlier this month just days shy of what would've been her 21st birthday on Monday, 14 July. Meanwhile, the man accused of murdering Bell has been pictured for the first time . Mexican crew member Brigido Munoz allegedly sexually assaulted and killed Bell in the 142-foot vessel's engine room. Munoz appeared in court in capital Nassau, where Chief Magistrate Roberto Reckley denied him bail and remanded him in custody until a 20 November hearing. Munoz, who worked as an engineer on board the Far From It yacht, was not required to enter a plea. The magistrates court heard Bell was found partially clothed and bloodied, with slash wounds to her neck and defensive injuries on her arms – suggesting she fought for her life. Munoz was reportedly discovered lying close by with injuries on his arms, in what authorities suspect may have been a failed suicide attempt. He was rushed to hospital before being charged. Described by friends as a 'golden girl,' Bell was reportedly just days away from returning to South Africa to celebrate her 21st birthday on 14 July. Bell's former school, Hillcrest High School, in KwaZulu-Natal, paid tribute to her on social media. 'It is with great sadness that we offer our deepest condolences to the family and friends, and all who knew and loved former Hillcrest High School pupil, Paige Bell. 'Paige matriculated in 2022 and is remembered by our HHS community as an incredibly special young lady who was the happiest, most bubbly person. 'We know that her untimely and tragic death is a great loss to all who knew Paige, and beyond devastating to her parents and family. 'As a school we will be holding them in our thoughts and prayers and would like to ask for the support of the greater HHS community in bringing Paige home to her family. 'Please share and donate to the GoFundMe account that was set up, in her honour, to assist her family during this incredibly difficult time.' Post your condolences below, by … Leaving a comment below, or sending a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
