2 Chinese poachers jailed 30 yrs for slaughtering a whopping 226 elephants - Polidicks

[IMG]http://www.thecitizen.co.tz/image/view/-/3123748/highRes/1284887/-/maxw/600/-/ipfabe/-/poachers.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i.imgur.com/8oUyrJu.png[/IMG] [url]http://shanghaiist.com/2016/03/20/chinese_poachers_jailed_for_30_years.php[/url] [quote] Two Chinese nationals were yesterday sentenced to 30 years in jail by a court in Tanzania after being found guilty of possessing 707 pieces of ivory. Xu Fujie and Huang Qin were given the choice of imprisonment or paying a record Sh100.7 billion ($46 million) fine, which local publication [URL="http://www.thecitizen.co.tz/News/Chinese-jailed-30-years-for-slaughter-of-226-elephants-/-/1840340/3123746/-/ca8766z/-/index.html"]The Citizen[/URL] says is "one of the heaviest sentences aimed at curbing the illegal trade." The magistrate in charge of court proceedings reportedly had to adjourn the court session half way through pronouncing the judgement after Xu almost fainted in shock at the court's decision. The poachers entered the country in 2010 and stayed for three years before they were arrested in Dar es Salaam. The pair were also convicted of attempting to bribe the police and government officials with Sh30.2 million (almost $14,000). "Considering the evidence adduced in court and the huge loss that the nation has suffered for the killing of 226 elephants, it is obvious that the accused are a real threat to the elephant generation within the boundaries of our country," said the magistrate.[/quote] About time the hunters become the hunted.

[QUOTE]The pair were also convicted of attempting to bribe the police and government officials[/QUOTE] Throw the key away, then.

[QUOTE=Grandzeit;49971791]Throw the key away, then.[/QUOTE] Already done. By the time they get out one of them will be in the ground and the other an old man

226 folks dead, just for their tusks. Coupled with the bribery and whatnot, life seems like a more appropriate sentence for these psychos. Keep them confined until we can fix 'em up.

I was gonna say ludicrous, but 226 elephants is worse. Way worse.

I wonder what were their methods of killing the elephants. Is there any info about that? Or, let's just hope there was as little animal cruelty involved as possible.. [editline]20th March 2016[/editline] ALso 30 years is fine people, relax

To be quite fair, they didn't kill anyone as a result of poaching, so the sentence is fair. It's not like those ultra aggressive poachers who have to be gunned down on the spot because they shoot the authorities on sight. They're both old enough to be physically unable to continue poaching when they get out.

[QUOTE=Bat-shit;49972007]I wonder what were their methods of killing the elephants. Is there any info about that? Or, let's just hope there was as little animal cruelty involved as possible.. [editline]20th March 2016[/editline] ALso 30 years is fine people, relax[/QUOTE] A lot of times they just shoot it to stop it then chainsaw off the tusks and leave the animal to bleed out in pain

[QUOTE=Ganerumo;49972063]To be quite fair, they didn't kill anyone as a result of poaching, so the sentence is fair. It's not like those ultra aggressive poachers who have to be gunned down on the spot because they shoot the authorities on sight. They're both old enough to be physically unable to continue poaching when they get out.[/QUOTE] I always wondered, what do people do after they serve such sentences? You come out after 3 decades, shit has changed drastically, your friends and family either dead or old and different. How does one even stay sane after something like that?

Good riddance you selfish pricks. I only hope the damage they've done to the species can be reversed. Seriously, what makes ivory so valuable that people are willing to wipe out an entire species for some bone matter.

[QUOTE=rndgenerator;49972449]I always wondered, what do people do after they serve such sentences? You come out after 3 decades, shit has changed drastically, your friends and family either dead or old and different. How does one even stay sane after something like that?[/QUOTE] Being in prison doesn't mean you necessarily lose contact with the outside world.

[QUOTE=Ganerumo;49972511]Being in prison doesn't mean you necessarily lose contact with the outside world.[/QUOTE]Seeing as most prisons are not up to date with tech, you kinda do. Of course you don't lose all contact, but most of it you do. Sure you might read about new stuff in a paper of see it on TV if they have one, but that's really nothing when you're limited to a single building for 30 years with very limited outside contact.

[QUOTE=Ganerumo;49972511]Being in prison doesn't mean you necessarily lose contact with the outside world.[/QUOTE] I'm guessing prison in Tanzania is a lot less forgiving than your average western/European prison. These dudes could be completely different people by the end of it.

[QUOTE=Ganerumo;49972063]They're both old enough to be physically unable to continue poaching when they get out.[/QUOTE] There may also be hampered by how there might not be any elephants when they get out.

[QUOTE=Sableye;49972429]A lot of times they just shoot it to stop it then chainsaw off the tusks and leave the animal to bleed out in pain[/QUOTE] I don't think anyone's that coldblooded to do that even to an animal. Thinking about surgery doctors it now makes sense, but still it's fucking brutal

[QUOTE=ichiman94;49972686]I don't think anyone's that coldblooded to do that even to an animal[/QUOTE]Very naive. This is not even THAT bad when it comes to what people do to animals.

[QUOTE=ichiman94;49972686]I don't think anyone's that coldblooded to do that even to an animal. Thinking about surgery doctors it now makes sense, but still it's fucking brutal[/QUOTE] Given China's ropey track record towards both humans and animals alike they probably just shot them until they could saw off their tusks without getting killed.

[QUOTE=GordonZombie;49972506]Good riddance you selfish pricks. I only hope the damage they've done to the species can be reversed. Seriously, what makes ivory so valuable that people are willing to wipe out an entire species for some bone matter.[/QUOTE] Well, throughout times people have made items from bone, and that's pretty metal.

[QUOTE=Bat-shit;49972983]Well, throughout times people have made items from bone, and that's pretty metal.[/QUOTE] Is there something that makes the horns of elephants and rhinos so appealing?

[QUOTE=GordonZombie;49975691]Is there something that makes the horns of elephants and rhinos so appealing?[/QUOTE] Ancient chinese medicine that gives you 30 years in jail. [sp]Yes its called Ivory[/sp]

I wonder if it's possible to prevent poaching by growing the ivory in a lab and by doing so overflow the market to drop the price so that it's no longer worth the effort+risk.

[QUOTE=GordonZombie;49975691]Is there something that makes the horns of elephants and rhinos so appealing?[/QUOTE] No.. The chemical structure is the same, but I guess what makes them more appealing is the size of them.

[QUOTE=GordonZombie;49975691]Is there something that makes the horns of elephants and rhinos so appealing?[/QUOTE] Depends on the demand. There's the decorative market that just wants ivory to look pretty in their house, and there's the chinese medicine market that's basically just charlatans claiming ground rhino horn can give you sexual powers.

[QUOTE=Kaelazun;49975763]I wonder if it's possible to prevent poaching by growing the ivory in a lab and by doing so overflow the market to drop the price so that it's no longer worth the effort+risk.[/QUOTE] It is, but then the real ivory will become more expensive not less

[QUOTE=Sableye;49976528]It is, but then the real ivory will become more expensive not less[/QUOTE] Assuming lab grown ivory is identical, how would you tell?

[QUOTE=rndgenerator;49976537]Assuming lab grown ivory is identical, how would you tell?[/QUOTE] If you can't tell the difference then the circuits for real ivory will just become more exclusive and increase their price. Pretty sure you would be able to tell the difference anyway due simply to how ivory is naturally grown. The inner rings that show the age of the ivory would likely be absent from lab grown ivory.

I just hope more elephant subspecies start becoming tuskless before they are wiped out.

[QUOTE=Ganerumo;49976585]If you can't tell the difference then the circuits for real ivory will just become more exclusive and increase their price. Pretty sure you would be able to tell the difference anyway due simply to how ivory is naturally grown. The inner rings that show the age of the ivory would likely be absent from lab grown ivory.[/QUOTE] And the fact that it has no signs of chipping, scratches etc.

Probably off but I'm gonna ballpark that at $100m of ivory. Unless they don't target males and just wipe out entire herds.