Kenyan Man who Brutally Hacked Elephant to Death in Viral Video Arrested

One of the suspects seen hacking an elephant to death in a viral video that emerged on social media last month was on Monday arraigned in court.

Kenneth Baabu Muthaura, who was among a group of men filmed mercilessly butchering the jumbo with machetes in a village in Meru County, was arrested after he was positively identified from the horrifying video, according to Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) assistant director in charge of Eastern Conservation area Michael Wanjau.

KWS said the incident happened in June 2018 near Imenti Forest in Meru County but no one was arrested. It was until the shocking video surfaced online on November 19th, 2019 that KWS learned what happened to the animal and promised to take action.

In the video that sparked outrage from online users, one of the men is seen repeatedly slashing the animal on its hind limbs and cutting off chunks of its flesh while it is still alive.

Three suspects including Muthaura were arrested last week but two were set free over insufficient evidence. Wanjau said officers are searching for 10 other suspects also identified from the video, adding that bone samples from the dead animal were taken for DNA forensic matching with the tusks to be presented as evidence in court.

Appearing before Nanyuki Law Court on Monday, Muthaura was charged with killing an elephant without lawful authority. He pleaded not guilty to the charges before Nanyuki Resident Magistrate Vincent Masivo and was released on a Sh300,000 bond. The case will be mentioned in January 2020.