North West residents feast on elephants that escaped from game farm
North West residents helped themselves to some dead elephant meat. The elephants escaped from a game farm on 27 April. Residents help themselves to dead elephant meat. Images: Pixabay/ Twitter @KaraboKbmags READ MORE: Animal sighting: A male rhino drives calf away from mother- WATCH Residents of Lekubung in Zeerust, North West, wasted no time in […]
North West residents helped themselves to some dead elephant meat. The elephants escaped from a game farm on 27 April.
Residents help themselves to dead elephant meat. Images: Pixabay/ Twitter @KaraboKbmags
Residents of Lekubung in Zeerust, North West, wasted no time in helping themselves feast on dead elephants after they were killed by provincial authorities on Tuesday.
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RESIDENTS HELP THEMSELVES TO SOME ELEPHANTS MEAT
According to authorities, the elephants were killed because they were damaging property. It was earlier reported that they had escaped from a game farm.
According to News24, a video that was taken at the scene where the elephants were killed, scores of people could be seen skinning the animals.
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As they cut the meat and removed the skin from the elephant, several voices can be heard in the background, saying: “Go, take a piece.”
Jonathan Denga, the director of biodiversity management and conservation in the North West Department of Economic Development, Environment Conservation, and Tourism, said they escaped the game farm through a broken fence on 27 April.
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COMMUNITY MEMBERS FEAR FOR THEIR SAFETY
After they were spotted in one of the residents’ areas, community members were concerned for their safety and said they ruined their property.
Denga said residents threatened to strike and close the roads because the issue was not being addressed.
“Community members said they didn’t feel safe and we had to do something about it. The elephants would normally target a blue container that wasn’t too far from the farm because they thought it was a toy,” he said.
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Residents alerted them on Tuesday that the elephants were back.
“Yesterday, late morning, our two employees shot two elephants in a bush between the community of Lekubung and the game reserve. It was a controlled shooting,” Denga added.
Denga further said claims that the community had illegally poached the elephants were incorrect.
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