Original subtitles

I'm telling you,

Billy Colton has compromised our files,

and I don't like it.

Yes, and as soon as you're finished,

I want a full report on how security was breached in the first place.

And check the files, see if anything else is missing.

Hi, Pete.

Ah, MacGyver.

What's this I hear about Billy?

I thought he was working out okay.

Well, he was. Listen, he's been a model employee.

Ever since you first talked me into giving him a job in the mailroom.

In fact, right up until this.

This is a confidential case file

associated with the Phoenix Foundation endangered species program.

Now, two years ago, we established a reward,

and we hired Billy's brothers, Frank and Jesse,

to find this man.

- Ladysmith? - Yeah.

He's the godfather of the poaching trade.

And he's still at large.

And he personally is responsible

for pushing several African species

right to the brink of extinction.

So the guy's a slimeball.

What's that got to do with Billy?

Well, Billy hasn't been back here to work since last Monday,

so naturally we got concerned.

In his locker, we found this. Come here.

And these.

Look at this.

"Rhino Horn Stockpile Stolen From Nabo Ranch"?

Yeah. Nabo Ranch is an animal preserve

that we've been working with in Kambezi.

It's run by a woman named Kate Hubley.

Here, look at this.

Billy circled Nabo on the map.

So, you think Billy made some connection

between this Ladysmith and the stolen horns?

No, I-I-I'm suggesting more than that.

I think he skipped out on a good steady job again

for a crack at a $50,000 reward,

and a chance to make the big score that his brothers couldn't.

Oh, I should have seen it coming.

Yeah, well, that's not all.

Your friend Billy

booked a flight to Kambezi two days ago,

and he used our travel agency,

and he charged it to the Phoenix Foundation.

Listen, you told me about Billy.

I mean, how he's jealous of his brothers,

and how he really wants to be a bounty hunter himself.

Well, I think he's trying to prove something here

that he's not ready to prove.

Guess we should call Frank and Jesse, huh?

No, no, that won't work. I've already tried them.

They are not to be found.

That's why I called you.

I hope you're not...

MacGyver, I have already sent a telegram

to Ms. Hubley telling her that you are on the way.

But, Africa? Pete, I can't just go to Africa.

MacGyver, why not?

Listen, this kid is chasing a ruthless killer.

He is in way, way over his head.

Besides,

aside from his brothers,

you are the closest thing that he's got to family.

I mean, how can you not go?

We've been waging war with the poachers for years.

And we've all been affected by it.

And now Sam is gone.

Sam was a good friend

and a brave ranger.

He believed that the stockpile he was guarding represented hope.

The hope that by burning those horns,

we might finally get our message across to world governments

to enforce the import ban on rhino horns,

and stop the slaughter of our black rhinos

before they become extinct.

And the slaughter of the people trying to protect them.

Sam gave his life for that dream.

If we lose the rhinos, will the elephants be next?

This is a war we simply must win.

We won't let you down, Sam.

We'll get those horns back.

Whatever it takes.

Excuse me?

Kate Hubley?

Yes?

Hi, my name's MacGyver.

Um, Pete Thornton sent you a telegram from the States.

Oh, yes. I've been expecting you.

Would you excuse me?

I need to see the family for a moment.

Come.

Remarkable woman.

I am General Mabuto,

Kambezi Defense Force.

MacGyver.

It is not every white heiress that would come to a black country

and create a sanctuary like Nabo Ranch

for endangered animals.

Well, from what I know about the poaching problem,

Africa and what's left of the rhino population

are pretty lucky to have her.

Yes.

But even with my soldiers reinforcing Kate's rangers,

there isn't enough manpower to stop the poachers.

Are you here to help Kate with the problem, Mr. MacGyver?

Uh, well I'd like to, but I'm here on a more private matter.

Very good. Enjoy your visit.

But, uh, be careful, sir.

Africa is like a sleeping lion.

Very beautiful...

when left alone.

Sorry.

Uh, Pete mentioned something in his telegram

about a missing Phoenix employee?

Yeah. Evidently he made a connection

to your stolen rhino horns.

We think he's tracking a poaching trader,

name of Ladysmith. You heard of him?

That name is synonymous with poaching.

What's your friend's name again?

Billy Colton.

Doesn't look familiar.

We're ready to go.

The horns and the boxes, just as I promised.

As you can see, Ladysmith, your refinery proved quite effective.

The perfect way to smuggle this product.

Excellent.

Drugs?

Good. Now where is the money?

Oh, don't worry. You get your money as soon as the product

is safely across the border in South Africa.

That was not our deal.

Our agreement was payment in full, in advance.

The deal's changed.

I have risked everything to acquire the product!

I need that money!

Don't ever touch me again!

No black man touches me, you understand?

Now listen carefully.

Chan is the biggest in the business.

He's the only person I know who can handle a load this big.

I want my money.

I'm meeting him in the Safari Room of the Gold City Hotel at 5:00.

As soon as I see the money,

we'll join you at the rendezvous point.

Now you get paid, and everybody goes home happy.

Now, that's the way it is now, Mabuto.

Be there.

I will be there.

But if you do not have my money this time,

I will cut you

into small pieces.

Then you will not have to worry

about a black man touching you again.

You're looking at 50 million years of survival.

Now they're almost gone?

Because of the very thing nature gave them to protect themselves.

I checked with all my rangers. Nobody's seen your friend.

Well, that doesn't make sense.

Yeah, I'm on my way.

We've got more poachers loose. You'd better stay here.

- I'll come along. - I can handle it.

Didn't say you couldn't.

Just offering help.

All right then, come on.

Djano!

We found the poacher just beyond the trees, Miss Kate.

Take him to the ranch.

Oh, my God.

He used a chainsaw so he could get away faster.

A chainsaw, for God's sake!

It never stops, MacGyver.

Damn it, it never stops!

He speaks a mountain dialect, Miss Kate,

but I have been able to determine

that he was involved somehow in the stockpile theft.

Who does he work for?

I can't determine that.

But he jabbered something about a "sugar house."

Sugar house?

Well, thanks.

That's the third rhino this month.

Kate, I gotta tell you.

That is the sickest, cruelest,

most inhumane thing I've ever seen in my life.

And for what?

A few hundred dollars?

That's a year's wage for most Africans.

I want to hate the poachers, but I can't.

It's the traders, the ones who control the market

who have to be stopped.

They get over $15,000 a kilo for those horns.

That... That's more than the price of gold.

And more than enough to make it dangerous

for anyone who gets in their way, huh?

Like your friend?

Yeah, especially him.

You know, I don't get it.

Billy cut out an article about the theft at the ranch,

and circled Nabo on the map.

But nobody around here's seen him.

This whole district is called Nabo.

Well, maybe he made some other connection.

Wait, wait!

The poacher said "sugar house."

Maybe he was talking about the Nabo Sugar refinery.

It's about 20 miles north of here.

Could be a base of operations.

All right, I'll check it out.

Uh...

I can find it.

I didn't say you couldn't.

Just offering my help.

There were over 2,000 horns in that stockpile.

They came from all over Africa.

Some confiscated,

others removed from rhinos

as part of the De-horning program

to save them from poachers.

Well, the article said you were planning on burning 'em.

Yes. As a symbol.

In front of the world press.

I figured if we destroyed

millions of dollars worth of horns instead of selling them,

maybe we'd convince the world leaders how urgent the problem is

and finally get them to enforce the import ban on rhino horns.

Well, won't burning those horns increase the demand?

There are less than 3,500 black rhinos left on the planet.

After the supply is gone,

the demand is irrelevant.

He doesn't speak Swahili.

He must be a mountain tribesman.

Gold fillings.

No calluses on his hands.

This man is no tribesman.

Who are you?

He's a thief. Shoot him.

No, no, wait!

He speaks English!

He must be a spy.

No! I mean...

Well, actually, yes, I am a spy.

Actually, I work for Ladysmith.

What?

Hey, let's face it, the dude don't trust you, you understand?

Uh, nothing heavy.

He just sent me to, uh, keep an eye on things.

You know, make sure everything goes down copacetic,

you know what I'm saying?

It sounds as if you're a valued employee of Ladysmith's.

Oh, you got that straight.

Good.

I have been wanting to send Ladysmith a message

that best expresses my feelings towards him.

Hang him.

Hang?

That's a joke, right? Well, no!

Well, I lied, I'm not a...

Wait, wait, wait!

That's it. Nabo Sugar.

W-What are you doing?

I thought we'd go in around the back

in case there is a connection to that poacher.

The horns, MacGyver. The boat's leaving!

That's Billy!

Oh, my God, they're gonna hang him!

All right. You get to the Jeep.

On my signal, drive straight at 'em.

- Got it. - Go.

- Billy! - MacGyver!

Run, Billy, run!

MacGyver, am I glad to see you!

What are you doing here?

No, Billy, I'll ask the questions.

What are you doing here?

Come on, Billy.

Let's see if we can sort this out.

I appreciate everything you and Miss Hubley

have done for me, MacGyver.

I owe you my life.

And you owe Pete Thornton and your brothers a huge explanation.

I was just trying to prove to them

that I can be just as good as they are.

Billy,

Frank and Jesse are experienced professional bounty hunters.

Do you know what that means?

That means you take things one step at a time,

you think 'em through,

and you ask for help when it's obvious you need it!

Okay! All right! I'm a loser.

- That's not what I said. - Yeah, but you think it.

- Just like Jesse and Frank. - Billy,

we all love you.

It's just that you never listen to anybody!

Why don't you both come up to the house?

We'll get something cool to drink.

Answer me one thing here.

How did you ever connect Ladysmith

with that sugar refinery, huh?

I wrote every records office in Africa

asking for anything with Ladysmith's name on it.

This one escrow officer

gave me the one big score Jesse and Frank never found.

Nabo Sugar.

Right.

Yeah, now, Billy, you see, that is a very smart piece of detective work.

Yeah, I thought so, too.

I guess that's why I figured I could bag Ladysmith all by my lonely.

Yeah, but I don't get it. You saw him arrive, you saw him leave.

Why did you bother to stick around after that?

'Cause when I saw what was going down,

I figured I could bag the whole operation by myself.

Ladysmith, his supplier, the works.

This supplier. Who's he?

I don't know, some black guy.

Him and a few other Zulus took off in a boat

with the horns and the dope.

Dope?

Yeah, dope.

That's why this bust is so huge.

It's more than just rhino horns, MacGyver.

It's like a whole drug operation,

some kind of African crack or something.

They're running it in these little sugar packets.

MacGyver, what is it?

Uh, I don't know.

What are you doin'?

I'm making a filter.

Sugar dissolves in water.

That ain't like no dope I've ever seen.

Keratin.

Keratin?

That's the stuff your fingernails are made out of.

Also rhino horn.

That means they're dealing to two different markets.

The granulated horn is sold in Asia.

The whole horn ends up in North Yemen.

Yeah, I heard the, uh, Chinese use it in medicines.

But what would they do with the whole horns in Yemen?

They make dagger handles out of it as a symbol of virility.

Nice, huh?

They are servicing the two biggest markets in the world.

If we could just stop that boat and get those horns.

Billy, any idea where that boat is going?

No. But Ladysmith said he was gonna meet the buyer

at some place called the, uh, Gold City Hotel at 5:00 today.

Oh, that's an exclusive resort downriver, in South Africa.

How long would it take to get there?

Maybe an hour.

You're thinking of following the buyer?

No. I was thinking of taking his place.

MacGyver, you're starting to sound like I've been acting.

The, uh, buyer's name is Chan.

As in Chinese.

And Ladysmith knows the dude.

How do you figure on taking his place?

I don't know, Billy.

But I do know I need your help.

Chan is registered in Room 580.

All right, you said the meeting's at 5:00. That gives you 10 minutes.

After all I put you two through,

are you sure you want to trust me to pull this off?

I trust you, Billy.

We'll be up there.

You two sure know how to turn on the heat.

MacGyver...

Five to 5:00.

- What do you want? - Uh, room service.

I didn't order any room service.

You didn't?

Uh, let me check the order.

Can you hold this for a minute?

I did it!

Five after 5:00.

Looks like Billy did his part.

Ladysmith.

Name's MacGyver. Chan sent me.

Where is Chan? I only deal with Chan.

Well, not this time.

See, Chan likes to layer himself in deals this big.

So, are we gonna dance around a little here

or are we gonna do some business?

Where's the money?

Don't worry about the money.

I see the horns first.

No, no.

You don't see the horns until I see the money.

That's the way it is.

That's not the way Chan does business.

Then Chan has a problem.

Look, either I see those horns first,

or the deal's off.

You're bluffing the wrong man, Mr. MacGyver.

Uh-uh,

I don't need to bluff.

I give you 10 seconds to change your mind

or Chan goes home empty-handed.

Look, pal...

We both know there aren't any other buyers big enough

to take those horns off your hands.

Five seconds.

It's been a pleasure meeting you.

What?

Wait!

Who are you?

I'm with MacGyver. I work for Chan also.

So?

So you two are a bit bull-headed

and I am not about to incur our boss's displeasure

by watching this deal fall apart.

What, you'd rather get our throats cut

for losing his money to this guy?

We have a method, Mr. Ladysmith.

You show MacGyver the horns.

He calls me and I arrive within five minutes with the money.

Now how can you argue with that?

All right. Done. With one hitch.

You come with me to look at the horns and he will bring the money.

- Uh-uh, no way. - Done. Where do we go?

Take Highway 5 to the Victoria Dam.

We'll meet on the Powerhouse Bridge.

After she's seen the horns,

I give you five minutes to show with the money. If you don't...

the natives will have a new toy to play with.

I'll get the car.

What are you doing? I had him totally bluffed.

- He wasn't going anywhere. - He was going out the door.

MacGyver, I want those horns back. It's important.

I know it's important, but you have to understand...

When am I gonna get through to you?

I can handle myself. This is Africa, remember?

The car's ready. Come on.

You take the old highway to the dam.

You can find it on the map. You'll get there ahead of us.

Yeah? Then what?

Then...

think of something.

You're awfully good at that, I've noticed.

Mission accomplished. What's next?

I'll think of something.

Looks like we beat Ladysmith here.

What's he doing here?

That's Ladysmith's supplier.

Why, what's wrong?

That guy is head of the Kambezi Defense Force.

His name's Mabuto.

He knows Kate.

And if he sees her...

she's dead.

So what you're saying is...

is we have to get down there before Kate and Ladysmith do.

Yeah, basically.

But how?

I mean, without them spotting us?

Shingle bolt flume.

Shingle what?

Don't tell me you're really gonna slide down that thing!

We are.

- MacGyver. - Hold tight.

Wait here.

You are late.

It was Chan's fault, not mine.

Where is the money?

Chan's people want to see the horns first.

That's not our agreement.

Whoa.

All right, you stay here. I'll get her out.

I warned you, eh?

Look, Chan has a system.

As soon as this woman sees the horns,

she will signal her partner and then he'll bring the money.

Woman? What woman?

In the car.

Okay, lady. Come on out, take a look at the horns.

- All right, Kate, let's go. - MacGyver, they're coming.

Follow my lead.

Come on, lady, get out of the car.

Miss Hubley?

You know her?

What kind of game is this?

What are you talking about? She's one of Chan's people.

That woman is a game conservationist, you fool!

She runs Nabo Ranch!

We stole the horns from there.

Die!

Kate!

Don't move.

That goes for you, too, slick!

Billy, cover them!

Hang on!

Oh, Billy, thank you.

MacGyver...

Tell 'em.

Well, we got 'em all, MacGyver.

Ladysmith, Mabuto, Chan...

Billy, what are you gonna do with the reward money?

Oh, I don't know.

Probably finance the next one.

- The next one? - Yeah, I didn't tell you?

Right before I left, I found out there was one other case

Jesse and Frank never cracked.

- Billy... - A guy named Romanov.

He jumped bail about six years ago with a bunch of those Faberge eggs.

I got a, you know, tip that he was in Russia and I thought...

Billy...

Yeah, it's a crazy idea.

Protecting the rhinos is a better use for that reward money.

Good man.

Today is a day of hope.

The hope that the people of the world

will recognize the plight of the black rhino before it's too late.

As we burn these horns,

we appeal to the leaders of the world

to save the black rhino from extinction.

By enforcing the worldwide import ban on rhino horns.

Please help us.

You think it'll work, MacGyver?

I hope so, Billy.

I sure hope so.

This is Richard Dean Anderson.

In 1989,

there are less than 4,000 black rhinos alive in the wild.

Unless something is done,

the current rate of killing will make them extinct

by the year 2000.