Argentine Emiliano Villegas will receive the international Clark Bavin award for his key role in dismantling a poaching and wildlife trafficking network. The ceremony is set for December 5 in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, at the CITES COP20. His efforts safeguarded endangered species in South America's Gran Chaco.
Emiliano Villegas, operational coordinator of the Fauna Area in the Environmental Control Brigade under the National Secretariat of Environment, has been honored for dismantling Caza & Safaris, run by Jorge Noya. The firm promoted illegal hunting tourism targeting endangered species and operated across Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil, and Bolivia.
Operations in 2023, led by Federal Justice and the Federal Prosecutor's Office No. 1 of Lomas de Zamora, seized 44 firearms, 12 vehicles, and nearly 8,000 items, including taxidermies, horns, and jaguar skins—a species declared a National Natural Monument in 2001. The probe involved collaboration with Freeland International, whose director Juliana Machado Ferreira nominated Villegas.
The Clark Bavin award recognizes efforts against environmental crimes and illegal wildlife trade, to be presented at the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES COP20), a major global conservation summit.
Candela Nassi, National Director of Environmental Assessment and Control, stated: “This recognition also reflects the sustained work and professionalism of the entire Environmental Control Brigade team, whose efforts contribute decisively to biodiversity protection and strengthening environmental control across the country.” She added: “Their coordinated work with national and international institutions exemplifies the value of public service and commitment to wildlife conservation”.
The case drew global attention for the network's scale and its threat to endangered species in the Gran Chaco region.