Saturday, September 02, 2017

Suspect shot in elephant poacher bust

The body of a wild elephant killed in Ayeyawady Region.

A suspected elephant poacher was shot while resisting arrest during a police bust on August 13 in Thabaung Township, Ayeyawady Region.

Suspect Cho Tin, a 55-year-old resident of Ayeywady Region, was wounded on his right thigh and is now being treated at the Pathein General Hospital. Two other suspects who were with Chi Tin at the time of the attempted arrest are on the loose, according to police.

Police Captain Myo Lwin of Thabaung Township said: “We’ve heard about elephant poachers in this region. After spotting a slaughtered elephant, we continued looking for suspects and found them in the middle of the forest. One suspect was aiming his gun at us, so we had to shoot him. The wound was not critical.”

The police also seized two guns, four small tusks and other remains of an elephant.

Soe Tint, chief of the Thabaung Township forestry department, said: “The dead elephant we found was huge. So I assume the poachers are working in large numbers.”

The suspect will face charges for hunting wildlife and carrying weapons.

Police, army and forest guards are carrying out operations against elephant poachers in Thabaung, Ngaputaw and Pathein townships.

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