A 26-year-old poacher was killed and another seriously injured in an attack by wild elephants in the Kuttambuzha forest near the Thattekkad Bird Sanctuary some 65 kilometre east of Kochi on Wednesday, according to Forest Department officials.
They said a gang of four poachers of which the two were members could have entered the forest early Wednesday night and had got trapped before the wild elephants as they could not spot the animals standing in their path in the darkness.
Tony Mathew (26) was killed when he had allegedly gone for poaching along with the three others in a particular area of the Kuttambuzha forest where elephants used to appear frequently, said officials. One of the gang members, Basil (30), was admitted to a private hospital in Aluva near Kochi with serious injuries.
“Tony could have been trampled to death by an elephant. Amidst the elephant attack, a loaded unlicensed gun seems to have gone off accidentally hitting one of his thighs,” an official said.
The incident came to light after the other two poachers, Sajith and Aneesh, told their friends and relatives about it.
Forest officials had spotted the body of Tony late Wednesday evening. Extensive searches in the area on Thursday morning yielded a damaged gun, two other guns, a machete, a knife and a bag. Sajith and Aneesh were absconding.
A case had been registered against the gang under the relevant sections of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.