Two poachers shot dead in Tsavo East National Park

Two out of four suspected poachers were on Tuesday shot dead by Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) rangers who were patrolling in Tsavo East National Park.

Kenya Wild Life Services officers managed to gun down the suspects in gun battle which lasted for almost an hour in the middle of the vast Tsavo National Park.

Two of the suspects, however, managed to escape with bullet wounds into the bush leaving their luggage behind including bows and poisonous arrows that they use to kill the wild animals.

An AK 47 rifle and 13 rounds of ammunition were recovered from the suspects who police say might have come from Kilifi County, which borders the Tsavo National Park to the South.

Taita Taveta County Commissioner Madam Kula Hache accompanied by security organs from the county visited the suspects’ hideout and congratulated the officers for killing the suspects.

Speaking to press, Ms Kula Hache said KWS officers are still trailing suspects who killed Rhinos early this month at the boundary between Makueni and Taita Taveta Counties.

The commissioner said patrols have been intensified in all corners of the Tsavo East and West National Park, adding that in future the number of rangers will be increased to enable them to contain the menace of poachers in the parks.

Regarding human-wildlife conflict, Hache said KWS in the past three weeks has managed to return more than 300 heads of elephants who broke the fence and invaded crops at the nearby farms into the National Park.

She called on the residents to volunteer information when wildlife invades their sambas adding that multi agencies are going round to educate residents on the importance of giving information.

She said sometimes wildlife break the fences in search of water and pasture outside the National Park.

She urged politicians to conduct their politics without politicking on matters of conservation.

Additional reporting by Majanga Michael