Horrifying moment a hippopotamus writhes around in a ditch before a French hunter shoots it dead in front of a cheering crowd after it wanders into a town in Senegal
- Hippo wandered into the town of Kédougou, in Senegal, causing locals to panic
- Animal appears to have got itself caught in a septic tank, becoming trapped
- Police called in French hunter François Huard who then shot the animal dead
- Activists condemned killing the endangered animal, calling it ‘murder’
- WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT
An endangered hippo has been shot dead by a French hunter after wandering into a village in Senegal, sparking outrage from animal activists.
The animal was killed on March 31 after it entered the village of Kédougou, in the country’s south, and got itself caught in a septic tank.
Police and firefighters were unable to free the trapped animal so called in François Huard, a professional hunter who manages the local safari resort Le Relais, to kill it.
Mr Huard shot the animal five times in the head in front of villagers who were recorded cheering as the animal died. The hippo’s body was then dragged away by a digger before being buried under loose soil.
A hippo was shot dead in Senegal after wandering into the village of Kédougou before becoming stuck in a septic tank by the side of a road
Mr Huard shot the animal five times in the head in order to kill it, while being watched by cheering villagers. Local officials said the killing was ‘for everyone’s benefit’
Local authorities described the shooting as ‘for everyone’s benefit’, according to France 24, but animal activists described it as ‘murder’ and called for an investigation.
Bamba Cissé, a lawyer in Dakar who specialises in crimes against wildlife, said: ‘The hippo is an endangered species and by law, you can only kill it in a legitimate case of self-defense.
The local governor called in French hunter François Huard to shoot the animal because there were no tranquiliser darts on hand
‘But the footage shows the animal was trapped in a septic tank and, at the moment it was killed, it didn’t pose a threat to anybody’s life.
‘The hunter said the governor had asked him to do it. We also need to open an investigation to determine the circumstances in which a governor has the power to ask a private citizen to kill an animal.’
While local authorities have not officially commented on the video, a man identifying himself as Commander Moussa Ndour, head of wildlife in Kédougou, spoke in a video posted to Facebook.
In the footage, he says the decision to kill the animal was made by the local governor after hearing that there were no tranquliser darts available.
It was at that point that Mr Huard was contacted and ordered to kill the animal.
It is not clear whether any action will be taken over the killing.
Animal activists have demanded an investigation into the killing which is forbidden under law unless there is a danger to life because hippos are an endangered species