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The High Court allowed a criminal appeal, quashed convictions for unlawful possession and dealing in government trophies, and set aside the sentences.
The caution statement was expunged due to non-compliance with mandatory legal provisions, but the remaining oral and documentary evidence, including independent witness testimony and uncontested exhibits, proved the prosecution's case beyond reasonable doubt. Procedural irregularities and delay in arraignment did not result in injustice or affect the outcome.
Source excerpt
The High Court dismissed a criminal appeal over unlawful possession and dealing in elephant tusks, upholding a 20-year concurrent sentence.
The appeal fails as the convictions and sentences for unlawful dealing and possession of government trophies are supported by properly admitted evidence and confessions; procedural irregularities do not vitiate the trial. Confiscation of minerals without conviction is unlawful and revised accordingly.
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Section 113(2) of the Wildlife Conservation Act overrides other written laws and permits offences under the Act to be tried in any district of Mainland Tanzania, regardless of place of arrest; no law was contravened by trial in Manyoni District Court; conviction and sentence were not illegal.
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The conviction and sentence were quashed and set aside due to procedural irregularities, specifically the improper admission of the inventory form (exhibit P6) and denial of the right to cross-examine a co-accused, both of which prejudiced the appellants and amounted to a denial of a fair trial.
Source excerpt
The search and seizure were lawful under the Wildlife Conservation Act; the chain of custody and labelling of exhibits were sufficiently established through credible witness testimony; the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt; the appellant's defence was considered and rejected; the sentence imposed for the second count was not compliant with the amended EOCCA and was revised to twenty years imprisonment without option of fine.
Source excerpt
The convictions on the first and second counts could not stand as the key exhibit (P2) was admitted in violation of mandatory procedural rules and the second count was based on a defective charge lacking DPP consent. The 4th appellant's conviction on the first count was upheld as his plea of guilty was unequivocal and the facts admitted disclosed the offence.
Source excerpt
The prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the accused were in unlawful possession or unlawfully dealt in government trophies. The chain of custody was broken due to invalid search and seizure, contradictions in witness testimonies, and lack of proof regarding the equivalence of tusks to four elephants. The alleged confession did not meet legal requirements. Doubts in the prosecution's case were resolved in favour of the accused.
Source excerpt
Court of Appeal partly allowed a wildlife-trophies appeal, quashing dealing counts for defective particulars, while upholding possession counts on the evidence.
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