Man held for gorilla slaughter

2008-03-19 07:26

Goma - A Virunga National Park official accused of ordering a gorilla slaughter in 2007 was arrested on Tuesday, said local authorities.

Honore Mashagiro, head of the southern section of the park who also worked with the Congolese conservation institute ICCN, was arrested in Goma, the capital of Nord-Kivu province, provincial environment minister Felicite Kalume said.

He was suspected of having "orchestrated the slaughter of mountain gorillas last year", said Kalume, who was not able to specify any motive for the killings that left nearly 10 of the animals dead in the forest.

According to a representative from the ICCN, who asked not to be named, six park wardens were set to be investigated by police. These guards were suspected of having followed orders from Mashagiro to track the animals down and kill them.

Classified as a world heritage site by UNESCO, the Virunga Park sheltered more than half the approximately 700 remaining mountain gorillas still living in the wild.

- AFP