TC News: Landscaper steals rare plants

[Hoover, J. E.]

In South Africa, a 52-year-old landscape artist coveted a rare,
endangered plant known as the laevifolius cycad. He coveted laevifolius
cycads so much that he stole two of them from a forest and planted them
in his own garden. But the laevifolius cycad was an endangered species,
and the two plants he stole had been tagged with microchips by
conservationists in order to monitor them. Consequently, it was not
difficult for the conservationists to track down the missing plants in
the landscape artist's garden. Since the cycads are worth a lot of
money, the landscape artist now finds himself in court on charges of
grand theft.

Sandton landscape artist in court for cycad theft
March 18, 1998
by Sharon Hammond

Randburg - A 52-year-old Sandton landscape artist appeared in the
Randburg magistrate's court on Wednesday after conservationists
allegedly found two stolen cycads worth about R27000 in his garden in
January.

Ernie Bouwer was not asked to plead on the charges of the illegal
possession and theft of endangered plant material. The two laevifolius
cycads, which the Mpumalanga Parks Board had tagged with microchips,
were stolen from Starvation Creek in the Berlin state forests at
Ngodwana, in Mpumalanga. Bouwer was arrested on January 9 after
officials of the Mpumalanga Parks Board and members of the special
investigation unit of Gauteng Nature Conservation, responded to a tip-
off that he was allegedly selling illegal cycads from his business at
his home.

Investigating officer for the Mpumalanga Parks Board, Herman Erasmus,
said the laevifolius cycad species sold for R90 per cm and that the two
plants found at Bouwer's house were worth about R13500 each. Erasmus
said the parks board had tagged 1000 cycads in the Berlin state forests,
of which 500 had already been stolen. Bouwer is out on R1000 bail and
will appear again in court on April 29 for a trial date to be set.

-African Eye News Service (South Africa)