In the wake of the illegal killing of Cecil—a 13-year-old black-maned lion and popular tourist attraction—in Zimbabwe, authorities have charged a nearby game park owner in association with the lion’s death. Honest Ndlovu, whose property sits adjacent to the Hwange National Park, has been charged by prosecutors for permitting “a person who is not ordinarily resident in Zimbabwe to hunt the said animal which was not on the hunting quota.”
The killing of Cecil the lion by U.S. dentist Walter Palmer triggered an international backlash against Africa’s multi-million dollar hunting industry, and has lead to a ban on trophy hunting in Botswana and caused four U.S. airlines to refuse to transport big-game ‘trophies.’
Related: American public calls for extradition of lion poacher Walter Palmer
In the hunt in which Cecil was killed, Palmer shot the lion with a bow and arrow after he had been lured out of the National Park and on to Ndlovu’s property, which is separated from the Park by a railroad track. Ndlovu denies the charge that he knowingly allowed a lion hunt on his property without appropriate permitting, and has been released on $200 bail. He will be expected back in court on September 18. If he is found guilty, Ndlovu faces a fine of $400 or up to one year in jail.
Many have called for Walter Palmer to also face charges for killing Cecil the lion, including Zimbabwe’s environment, water and climate minister, Oppah Muchinguri. However, the Guardian reports that as of Tuesday, August 17, Zimbabwe’s National Prosecuting Authority has not yet provided the necessary documentation to begin extradition proceedings against Dr. Palmer.
Via The Guardian
Lead image via Wikimedia Commons
