Another American has been charged with the murder of a lion in Zimbabwe weeks after a Minnsota dentist caused an global uproar over a similar killing last month.
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But the confirmation turned out to refer to another lion who had been tragically slain by poachers, not Jericho, the “brother” of Cecil – a lion who, unfortunately, had not been given a name.
Zimbabwean authorities have said they are seeking the extradition of Minnesota dentist Walter James Palmer, alleging he illegally killed Cecil the lion a month ago.
Palmer said in a statement to the Minneapolis Star Tribune newspaper this week that he thought the hunt was legal and he didn’t know Cecil was wearing an electronic collar as part of an Oxford University research project.
A report on the Facebook page of an advocacy group called the Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force said Jericho was killed on Saturday and that it would provide more details when they were available.
Now it has been reported that Cecil’s brother Jericho has also been killed by hunters.
“I hired several professional guides and they secured all proper permits”, Palmer said in his statement, as indicated by The Independent.
Stapelkamp said Cecil and Jericho oversaw two prides together.
Zimbabwe is cracking down on hunting in the wake of the illegal killing of Cecil the Lion.
Landowner Headman Sibanda was arrested and is assisting police, it said.
Jericho, a friend of Cecil the lion, is alive. The game park owner where the lion was killed is expected to appear in court next week. “The landowner who helped him with the hunt also did not have a have a quota for lion hunting”.
Palmer came with the intention of getting the biggest lion that he could and getting out.
Cecil, who was killed in early July, mated with about six lionesses and had about 24 cubs, Rodrigues has said. While Palmer has made an apology for killing the Huwange National Park favorite, his actions have brought attention to the practice of big game hunting across the world. “They shouldn’t have taken him on a – I call it a “canyon hunt” – like that if that was the situation”, said deer hunter Will Harrison.
The Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force charity said in a Facebook post it been informed that Cecil’s brother had been shot dead at this afternoon in Hwange National Park.
Cecil’s killing will have an effect on the area, explained Stapelkamp, a field researcher for an Oxford University study on lions.
“Jan Seski contributed greatly to our wildlife management and costs of running our reserve as well as to the rural community that is dependent on us for their livelihoods”, Dorrington said in an email.
When contacted by Reuters, ZCTF head Johnny Rodrigues said: “I can not speak to you today, please try tomorrow”.
“Hunting brings in no less than $40 million a year”, he said.
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Hes a well-educated man, hes got a lot of resources, Stapelkamp said.
