A fourth suspect jumped bail during the trial and is still at large. Nearly 7,000 rhinos have been slaughtered by poachers nationwide since 2008.
Dr Richard Emslie, a senior scientist and member of the African Rhino Specialist Group of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, said the sentences did not appear to match the economic cost of the crime.
While the presiding magistrate had the discretion to impose sentences he felt were appropriate, Emslie said it was clear that the sentences for Xulu and Buthelezi were not commensurate with the estimated economic losses to South African wildlife conservation and tourism. He suggested that while Buthelezi - a driver employed by the Ekurhuleni municipality in Gauteng at a salary of R15,700 per month - had not participated in the actual hunting, he had nevertheless been hired to pick up the poachers and transport the horns.
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