The unusual cargo of 18 giraffes that landed in Brazil in 2021 has resulted in a years-long scandal, shrouded in police investigations and allegations of animal mistreatment after four of them died.

On 11 November 2021, extraordinary "cargo" landed in Brazil. Eighteen giraffes arrived at an airport there - they had been exported from South Africa and some were meant to head to BioParque do Rio, a private zoo in Rio de Janeiro.

But the animals have become the centre of a years-long scandal involving a police investigation in Brazil and allegations of animal mistreatment.

After their arrival in Brazil in 2021, three of the giraffes died following their escape from a holding area they were being kept in while adapting to their new surroundings.

On 8 July 2023, a fourth giraffe died, putting the matter back into focus.

Daily Maverick has established that the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment is aware of what happened in Brazil but has not been informed of the findings of investigations carried out there.

It is understood that the surviving 14 giraffes are being kept at the Portobello Resort and Safari in Mangaratiba, along Rio de Janeiro's south coast.

Daily Maverick sent questions to a representative of a company in Johannesburg that, according to its website, has its own farms and specialises in giraffe exports, to check if it was linked to the animals...