13/06/2020
Four Poachers Arrested After Killing of Rare Silverback Gorilla in Uganda
The silverback, known as Rafiki, was killed by a poacher with a spear, according to the Uganda Wildlife Authority. He was the leader of the famed Nkuringo gorilla group, which has been popular with tourists for decades.
Four poachers were arrested this week in connection with the killing of a rare silverback gorilla in Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, a lush preserve of mist-shrouded hillsides and thick rain forests that is home to nearly half of the world’s mountain gorillas, the authorities said.
The silverback, known as Rafiki, was killed by a poacher with a spear, according to the Uganda Wildlife Authority. Rafiki, who was believed to be about 25, was the leader of the famed Nkuringo gorilla group, which has been popular with tourists for decades.
The last time a mountain gorilla was killed by a spear was in June 2011, according to the International Gorilla Conservation Programme. But there are signs that poaching in gorilla parks has increased in recent months, as tourism has fallen because of the coronavirus pandemic, the organization said.
Rangers found Rafiki’s body on June 2, a day after he was reported missing in the park, the Uganda Wildlife Authority said. A post-mortem report showed that a sharp device or object had penetrated his abdomen and pierced his internal organs, the authority said.
Four poachers were arrested. One of them, Byamukama Felix, confessed to killing the gorilla in self-defense, the authority said. Mr. Felix said that he had gone hunting in the park with another poacher, Bampabenda Evarist, when they came across the Nkuringo gorillas.
Rafiki charged, and Mr. Felix speared him, the authority said.
Mr. Felix, who is from the western Ugandan village of Murole, was found with bush pig meat as well as several hunting devices, including a spear, rope snares, wire snares and a hunting bell for a dog collar. The items were found in his home on June 4, the authority said.
Mr. Felix said that he had shared some of the bush pig meat with two other poachers, Museveni Valence and Mubangizi Yonasi, who were arrested on June 7, the authority said.
In a statement on Friday, the authority said that the four men were being held at a police station and were awaiting trial.
The statement did not say what charges the poachers faced and it was not immediately clear if they had lawyers. An authority spokesman did not immediately respond to messages seeking further information on Friday.
Last year, the Ugandan government passed a strict law that imposes tough penalties on poachers who hunt certain threatened species — including up to life in prison.
Sprawling over 80,000 acres in southwestern Uganda on the edge of the Rift Valley, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is home to a stunning array of wildlife, including baboons, chimpanzees, elephants and antelopes. It was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994, three years after it was created.
The park is a critical refuge for mountain gorillas, which were once on the brink of extinction, according to conservation groups.