Elephant 'tramples to death suspected poacher'

A suspected poacher has reportedly been trampled to death by an elephant as he tried to shoot the beast in Zimbabwe.

Incidents of elephant poaching have been on the rise in recent years, driven by increased demand for ivory Photo: EPA

The bloodied remains of Solomon Manjoro were found by rangers after what was thought to be a botched poaching trip at the protected Charara safari area inside a national park.

Zimbabwe's Sunday Mail reported that the local man was charged by the elephant after he entered the game reserve for an illegal hunting trip with a friend.

The dead man's alleged accomplice Noluck Tafuruka, 29, was later arrested inside the park and charged with illegal possession of a firearm.

The state-controlled Sunday Mail reported: "The poacher was recently trampled to death by an elephant after he failed to gun down the jumbo during a hunting expedition."

It is believed Manjoro and Tafuruka encountered the elephant after entering the huge game reserve at the end of April.

Police believe the pair, who were allegedly carrying unlicensed weapons, faced up to the beast and attempted to shoot it.

However Manjoro was killed when the animal failed to fall and instead charged towards him.

Tafuruka was later arrested by local police inside the Charara reserve, which lies near Zimbabwe's Lake Kariba in the north west of the country.

A third man, Godfrey Shonge, 52, from capital Harare, has also been arrested over the incident.

The pair appeared last week in court to face charges of illegal possession of firearms and of contravention of local wildlife laws.

The magistrate was told Manjoro and Tafuruka had entered the National Park between April 19 and 26 with the sole intention of poaching.

Incidents of elephant poaching have been on the rise in recent years, driven by increased demand for ivory.

The valuable substance is sold on the black market and often smuggled to Asian countries including China, where it is used for ornaments and jewellery.