The Zimbabwe government said Sunday that Dr. Jan Seski of Murrysville, Pennsylvania, used a bow and arrow in April to kill a lion without approval, on land where such hunting was not allowed.
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He’s also the director of a center at Allegheny General Hospital. The Daily Mail shows photos of him posing next to slain animals from an elephant to a hippo and an ostrich, etc. Right Now he’s nowhere to be found.
As reported by the Associated Press, Bronkhorst was charged with failing to prevent an illegal hunting expedition, and pled not guilty last week.
The development comes as Zimbabwe seeks the extradition of American dentist Walter Palmer, who – in a case that has since drawn worldwide media attention – hunted and killed “Cecil” the lion, who before his death in July had been a well-known tourist attraction. “So it wasn’t his intention to kill such a famous lion”, he said.
The Zimbabwe Professional Hunters and Guides Association confirmed Cecil was killed on private land outside the park, and an investigation is ongoing into the legality of the hunt.
Wildlife authorities have halted the hunting of big cats and elephants around Hwange National Park.
Seski seemed like a “perfect gentleman” to Stewart Dorrington, who operates Melorani Safaris and owns a game reserve in neighboring South Africa where Seski hunted in 2012.
He says he thought the hunt was legal and was unaware Cecil was protected. He merely followed his guides’ instructions, Palmer says.
Seski did not respond to The AP’s requests for comment.
Amidst the worldwide furor, Zimbabwe has suspended the hunting of lions, leopards and elephants in the Hwange area, while also imposing stricter regulations on bow-and-arrow hunts, which can now only be approved by the head of the wildlife authority.
Cecil, a rare black-maned lion, was lured out of the park to a property where it would technically not be illegal to hunt him.
On Sunday, researchers in Zimbabwe rejected reports of the death of another male lion with whom Cecil had formed a close bond.
“(Hunting) is an integral part of our country and it’s got to continue”, he said. Everything was done aboveboard.’.
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“Unfortunately it was too late to apprehend the foreign poacher as he had already absconded to his country of origin”, Muchinguri said at a news conference.
