Zimbabwe safari operator says 2nd American accused of illegal lion hunt acted

Vandals spray-painted the words “Lion killer” on the Florida vacation home of an American trophy hunter who killed a much-beloved big cat in Zimbabwe last month, authorities said Wednesday, August 5.

According to multiple news outlets, Seski, 68, is an avid hunter, and photographs of him on social media purportedly show him pictured next to big game kills, including a hippo, an ostrich and a zebra.

Seski did not respond to messages. He did not provide details on those cases.

Bronkhorst noted that the pair decided to kill an old male lion that they believed to be past breeding age and said Palmer “is a totally innocent party to this whole thing”, having “bought a hunt from me that was legitimate”.

“The American conducted his hunt in an area where lion hunting is outlawed”. He is accused of hunting without a quota and permit.

Cecil was shot with a bow and arrow outside of Hwange National Park after allegedly being lured outside the parks limits.

Sibanda, the landowner, said today in a telephone interview with The Associated Press that his client Seski didn’t break any law during his Zimbabwean hunt.

Online backlash regarding the death of Cecil has garnered such massive global support that the White House announced on Thursday that they would be reviewing a petition to extradite the dentist back to Zimbabwe to face charges. As per reports, one picture on the Melorani Safaris Facebook page was showing Seski giving pose with the body of the creature in 2012. Other captions described how his arrows penetrated organs and split bones.

Many in the fragile tourism industry fear bookings will fall, particularly in western Zimbabwe where hunting is a significant local employer, and has been relatively stable, although elephant hunters have largely moved to South Africa since the US banned the import of elephant trophies past year. Seski is not accused of having any ties to Cecil’s killing, and Zimbabwe has not requested Seski’s extradition.

A handful of Seski’s neighbors said he mostly keeps to himself and that he’d been buying up the land around his property.

Stephen Long, who also works for Bhejane Trust and lives in the western end of the Hwange national park, far from where Jericho holds territory, said in an email: “ZCTF has the same level of credibility as the National Enquirer”.

“I’m not saying an end to everything”, he said. Safari outfitters and bow-hunting sites have come up with the information.

“The police have it all now and they are using it as evidence”, he said.