Barely 48 hours after Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) rangers shot dead a lion at Isinya, another two-and-a-half-year-old lion has been found dead.
The lion, named Lemek, was found dead near Old Kitengela Township, about 20km south of Nairobi City.
KWS said its rangers discovered Lemek's speared carcass on Thursday.
“A KWS team working in collaboration with the Empakasi area chief, discovered Lemek’s body under a large thicket beside a dry riverbed. Earlier in the day, KWS had received a report of two or three lions sighted in the Oleshei area near Old Kitengela Township, which prompted KWS to mobilise aerial search. The search, which was intended to observe and drive the reported lions back to the park, lasted three hours and yielded no results. KWS is currently establishing if Lemek was one of the lions reported earlier in the day,” KWS said.
Ironically, the service has condemned the killing of the lion, yet its rangers blatantly killed another a day ago.
KWS said investigations have been launched to nab the culprits.
“The offenders of this act, which is forbidden under the Wildlife and Conservation Management Act, 2013, could not be immediately identified. Investigations are underway to establish the parties responsible.”
The service further said it will, together with Kajiado County Commissioner’s office and the local area chief, convene a meeting on Tuesday next week to explore ways in which it can work better with communities living near Nairobi National Park to mitigate human-lion conflict.