Zimbabwe seeking extradition of Cecil the lion’s killer from US

‘That was taken with the client’s camera, so I don’t have access to it, ‘ Bronkhorst said.

Walter Palmer’s extradition was being sought so that he could “be held accountable for his illegal action”, the BBC reported.

Muchinguri also said Palmer’s use of a bow and arrow to kill the lion, who is said to have been lured out of the national park with bait before being shot, was in contravention of Zimbabwean hunting regulations. I hired several professional guides and they secured all proper permits.

“We are taking this issue seriously”, he said, adding that Palmer should be tried in Zimbabwe for his alleged offenses.

Theo Bronkhorst told The Daily Telegraph Thursday in that after killing the lion, known as Cecil, Palmer asked the guide if he could locate an elephant whose tusk weighed more than 63 pounds “which is a very large elephant”.

Zimbabwe has started extradition proceedings and hopes the United States will cooperate, said Oppah Muchinguri, the African nation’s environment minister.

There is an extradition treaty between Zimbabwe and the United States.

“We are trying other avenues”, said Richard Chibuwe, the deputy chief of mission at the embassy in Washington.

Zimbabwe had an estimated 2,000 lions on private and government-owned reserves and issued hunting quotas of 50-70 lions every year, he added.

An agency spokesman verified the tweet but declined further comment. Courts in Zimbabwe first consider a fine when convicting a lion poacher before imposing a jail term, he said. More broadly, Mugabe has long railed against what he calls Western meddling in Africa, saying it is an extension of the colonial rule of the past. A felony conviction can result in a fine of up to $250,000 and a prison sentence of up to five years. In a note to his patients, he wrote: “I understand and respect that not everyone shares the same views on hunting”. Police in his home town in Minnesota said they were keeping a very close eye on his neighborhood to ensure the safety of all residents there.

The lion’s head, which was severed by the hunters, has been confiscated by the wildlife authorities, according to Director of National Parks and Wildlife Edson Chidziya.

Meanwhile, a Zimbabwean newspaper is reporting that the landowner in the Cecil the Lion case still hasn’t been charged for his part in the lion’s killing. “We believe in what would be an ethical hunt”, Pinizzotto said.