Two semi-tame elephants which lived in the Cecil Kop Nature Reserve near Mutare were shot dead after they trampled a police constable, Prince Dambe, to death. A statement by Wildlife and Environment Zimbabwe (WEZ) which runs Cecil Kop said the two elephants escaped from the campsite through part of the electric fence which had been damaged by cross border smugglers.
Constable Dambe initially fled from the elephants but later on, when he was making his way back to the campsite he ran straight into the two elephants, which then attacked him and trampled him to death.
Part of the statement reads:
Unfortunately he ran straight into the two elephants coming in the opposite direction. The signs at the scene indicated that both elephants participated in attacking and killing Constable Dambe
Mike Hitschmann, the member in charge of Cecil Kop said:
The death of this police officer could have been avoided.
They could very easily have chased the elephants away simply by firing warning shots.
Another elephant was killed in Victoria Falls after it trampled its handler.
More: News24