The Great Rhino Robbery | Preview (Sky Documentaries)

In 2011, regional museums and auction houses across Britain are hit by a bizarre crime spree. Police are baffled because despite holding millions of pounds worth of precious artefacts, only one item has been targeted during each robbery: rhino horn.

This pattern of crime quickly explodes and after twelve months, a suspected ninety-one rhino horns have been stolen from fifteen countries. And as the supply of dead rhino horn begins to run low, live rhinos increasingly become the target.

The Great Rhino Robbery is a journey into the dark heart of animal poaching and trafficking. At the centre of the story is rhino horn - a product made from the same substance as human fingernails - that becomes more valuable than gold and is touted as a ‘miracle cure’ for everything from hangovers to cancer.

With access to the criminals, the users and the investigators trying to save a species, this crime-meets-conservation boxset unpicks the astounding story behind why the rhino is facing extinction and tells the remarkable tale of the race to catch the people responsible - before it’s too late.

The Great Rhino Robbery airs Thursday 3rd January at 9pm on Sky Documentaries.