Infamous ivory smuggler Emile N’bouke has at last been brought down by authorities in the West African country of Togo. Dubbed “The Boss”, N’bouke is believed to be responsible for the slaughter of 10,000 elephants during his nearly four-decade reign.
Ofir Drori, founder of the Last Great Ape Organization (LAGA) in Cameroon, said via email that N’bouke was arrested by a special unit in Togo, which was originally set up to fight drug trafficking. At the time of his arrest, the unit found “hundreds of kilos of ivory, from his shop, hidden behind it, and in his house”. Drori’s team was instrumental in the capture of this international criminal.
N’bouke became rich and powerful dealing in illegal ivory by using legal ivory trade loopholes. Drori explained that N’bouke knows CITES “in detail, better than most government delegates and said we should not worry, because ivory is not entirely illegal and more legal sales are expected”. (Note: Criminals pay attention to CITES outcomes, and are profiting from the Convention’s history of relaxing trade bans.)
Drori, along with investigative journalist Julian Rademeyer, led an operation in Togo to nab N’bouke, which was profiled on ABC Nightline in the US on August 5, 2013. Although N’bouke was tipped off and managed to escape this arrest attempt (filmed earlier in 2013), the announcement of his arrest came two days after the episode was broadcast.
Rhishja Cota
I am the founder of Annamiticus and I have been researching and writing about wildlife trafficking issues since 2009. I also founded World Pangolin Day in 2012. I am the author of USAID Wildlife Asia's Pangolin Species Identification Guide: A Rapid Assessment Tool for Field and Desk. I co-facilitated and was a presenter at the USAID Wildlife Asia Pangolin Care Workshop. At the 4th Regional Dialogue on Combating Trafficking of Wild Fauna and Flora, I facilitated the species roundtables on pangolins. I have trekked with forest rangers in Cambodia, journeyed to the streets of Hanoi to research the illegal wildlife trade, and to the rainforests of Sumatra and Java to document the world’s rarest rhinos. At CITES meetings, I collaborate with colleagues from around the world to lobby in favor of protecting endangered species. I hosted the Behind the Schemes podcast and am the author of the book Murder, Myths & Medicine. I enjoy music, desert gardening, herping, reading, creating, and walking with my dogs. Check out my t-shirts and stickers at snoots + teefers.