Eight People Arrested For Killing Elephant

Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun

The Ogun State Government says eight persons have been arrested for killing an elephant in a forest reserve in Ijebu North Local Government Area.

The state Commissioner for Forestry, Ayo Olubori, said the eight suspects were the hunter, who shot the elephant inside the forest reserve popularly called Igbo Elerin (Elephant Forest) and seven others, who later butchered the animal.

He added that the hunter had confessed to killing the animal and had explained that he was sent by some prominent persons, who wanted to use the tusks which cost N25m each.

Olubori said government officials and some security agents laid ambush in the forest at night before they could arrest the suspects.

He explained that the hunter, whose name he did not mention, killed the elephant in the early hours of Thursday while poaching in the forest reserved for preserving certain species of animals.

Olubori said, “The suspected killer of the wild animal was arrested on the spot at 1am on Thursday after  a three hour journey into the forest reserve . Elephants are  an endangered species and  we have them in limited number.  If care is not taken, they may go into extinction. We don’t want to be sanctioned by wildlife activists,the  United Nations Prohibition of Endangered Species, among others.

“We will charge the suspects to court by Monday (today). Preliminary report of the investigation has shown that the hunter was sent by some prominent people in the society to get them the elephant’s tusks which cost N25m each. He has confessed to the crime and he is on tape.”

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