15/08/2020
Poacher Who Killed Gorilla Rafiki Sentenced to 11 Years in Prison in Uganda by NYtimes.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/30/world/europe/poacher-gorilla-rafiki-silverback-uganda-prison.html
The man had confessed to killing Rafiki, a rare silverback gorilla who was the leader of the famed Nkuringo gorilla troop, popular with tourists.
A poacher who confessed to killing a rare silverback gorilla in Uganda in June was sentenced to 11 years in prison on Thursday, on charges of illegally entering a protected area and killing a gorilla, among other charges, authorities said.
The silverback, known as Rafiki, was the leader of a group of more than a dozen gorillas known as the Nkuringo troop, which has been popular with visitors to Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable National Park for decades. The nearly 80,000 acre UNESCO World Heritage Site is home to nearly half of the world’s mountain gorillas and has long drawn tourists from around the world hoping to catch a glimpse of the rare species.
“We are relieved that Rafiki has received justice and this should serve as an example to other people who kill wildlife,” Sam Mwandha, Uganda Wildlife Authority’s executive director, said in a statement released Thursday. “If one person kills wildlife, we all lose.”
Rafiki was believed to be about 25 years old when he went missing on June 1. His body was found the next day and four poachers were arrested a short time later.