Unknown poachers killed two white rhinos and took away their horns at a private ranch in central Kenya, wildlife officials confirmed on Friday.
Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) said in a statement released in Nairobi that its team is conducting investigations into a report on the killing in Laikipia’s Ol Jogi Wildlife Conservancy.
“The ranch owner alerted KWS officers that the rhinos had been killed and horns taken away during the Thursday night at Ol Jogi Ranch incident.”said the statement. “It has now been established that two rhino horns from one carcass were intact while the poachers had made away with two others.”
The latest incident is the first rhino poaching incident this year and only one in the last six months in the country.
KWS Acting Director-General William Kiprono will on Saturday lead a team of senior officers from Nairobi to the scene of crime to assess the situation.
“KWS is working on a strategy to address emerging threats to wildlife on private ranches. The ranches have become more vulnerable to poaching cartels after security was tightened in national parks and reserves,”said the statement.
Covering an area of 58,000 acres, Ol Jogi Wildlife Conservancy is rich in wildlife and also rears beef cows. It includes a rhino sanctuary, a wildlife rescue centre and a veterinary clinic that attend to wild animals from across the world.
