trafficking - The African Mirror

Jul

2022

Two DRC men plead guilty to trafficking rhino horns

KANISHKA SINGH TWO Congolese, who were earlier arrested in the United States and indicted by a federal grand jury, have pleaded guilty to trafficking elephant ivory and white rhinoceros horn from the Democratic Republic of Congo to Seattle, the U.S. Justice Department said. An American flag waves outside the U.S. Department of Justice Building in Washington, U.S., December 15, 2020. REUTERS/Al Drago/File Photo Herdade Lokua, 34, and Jospin Mujangi, 32, of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, were arrested in November last year outside of Seattle before a federal grand jury indicted them for conspiracy, money laundering, smuggling and legal violations…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

Libya fails to stop migrant detention abuses, as EU-backed returns soar

HUMAN RIGHTS

SARA CRETA ZINTAN, LibyaThe EU-backed Libyan Coast Guard has intercepted more than 13,000 asylum seekers and migrants at sea this year, preventing them from reaching Europe – already a greater number than in all of 2020. Those intercepted are returned to Libya and sent to detention centres where a well-documented cycle of extortion, torture, gender-based violence, and trafficking has been taking place for years. At the same time, the EU is facing intensifying scrutiny over its hand in the system due to its support for the Libyan Coast Guard – including the use of its aerial surveillance assets to coordinate interceptions and returns to…

Dec

2020

By The African Mirror

Black market meds: how nuclear analysis can fight trafficking of counterfeit medicines

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

THE trafficking of counterfeit and illegal medicines is a growing global challenge, with many criminal organisations involved and huge amounts of cash changing hands. In our recent research, we propose a new method for testing and tracing illegal counterfeit medicines. The solution is nuclear. FRANCESCO SAVERIO ROMOLO, Expert for Forensic Sciences at InternAational Atomic Energy Agency, Università degli Studi di Bergamo MATTEO GALLIDABINO, Senior Lecturer in Forensic Science, Northumbria University, Newcastle Counterfeit medicines are attractive for criminals. They have high profit margins, with relatively low risks in terms of legal consequences. It is also quite easy to deceive consumers into…