Masunda faces 12 years jail for poaching baboon
Zim Standard

BY GIBBS DUBE

BULAWAYO - businessman, locked in a land dispute with Zanu PF
chairman and Speaker of Parliament John Nkomo, has appeared before a Hwange
magistrate facing charges of illegally hunting wildlife worth $123 million
and if convicted faces up to 12 years in jail.

Langton Masunda (41), granted $2 million bail, was not asked to
plead to six charges of contravening provisions of the Parks and Wildlife
Act when he appeared before Ailene Madzorera for an initial remand.

If found guilty of illegally hunting a baboon worth $3 million,
two buffalo ($20 million), elephant ($60 million), sable ($20 million) and
zebra ($20 million) at the disputed Lugo Ranch owned by Nkomo, he may be
jailed for a period not exceeding two years on each charge.

Masunda may be alternatively fined not less than $2 million for
each count or face both imprisonment and fine, according to provisions of
the Parks and Wildlife Act.

The State, represented by Sifelumusa Fuzane, claims that on six
occasions between April and May this year, Masunda allegedly hired three
professional hunters John Marira, Elliot Nobula and Andrea Trivella to hunt
various animal species at Lugo Ranch.

The three, allegedly instructed by Masunda, hunted and killed
six animals at the ranch without permits from the Department of Parks and
Wildlife Management thereby contravening Section 38 (1)(a) as read with
Section 2 of the Wildlife and Parks Act (Chap:20:14), claims the State.

Acting on a tip off, alleges the State, Nkomo's employees
informed the police leading to his arrest.

Meanwhile, Masunda whose farm was repossessed by government last
week, has filed an urgent chamber application at the High Court seeking the
reversal of Minister of State for National Security, Lands and Land Reform
and Resettlement Didymus Mutasa's decision to evict him from Volunteer Farms
in Gwayi, Matabeleland North.

According to his lawyer, Vonai Majoko of Majoko and Majoko Legal
Practitioners, his client is also seeking an urgent hearing of the matter as
Masunda allegedly expects trophy hunters from Italy who have already paid
US$34 000 for a hunting safari.

Masunda and Nkomo have, over the last two years, been locked in
a dispute over the ownership of Jijima Lodge - sited on Lugo Ranch owned by
the Zanu PF chairman.

Thank The Lord Jesus Christ that I live in the USA

Dr B

Why bother with the courts? It seems in Zim, you just take what you want if you have enough pull to get the guys with guns to back you up.

I have always wondered why there is no "Terrorist" or "Guerilla" movement vs. the Mugabe regime in Zim, but it seems that even Nkomo (the opposition party) got his share of the spoils. So maybe he is also happy with the status quo.

Haven't they ever heard of TITLE?

I guess the monkeys are fighting over the peanuts.

Dr B:

You and me both! I once found myself in a staring match with a huge baboon (Alpha male I suppose) while bouncing around in the truck as we went thorough a low area and the PH (who was driving) paused the truck. He began to click his teeth at me and began to bounce up and down. The PH told me " Either stop trying to stare him down at or shoot him". I told the PH (with whom I had become friends); " Give me your Colt" (a 357 Mag.) He told me to hold that Irish temper of mine because a lousy baboon wasn't worth the trophy fee (and in 1993, it was a heck of a lot less than I imagine it is today! Yeah, he made sure to remind me that I had let a baboon get me upset)