Suspected poachers living near Hwange in western Zimbabwe, where another 22 elephants were found poisoned on Monday, were allegedly sold bags of deadly cyanide for just R680 by a miner from Filabusi, a conservation group has claimed.

Agencies

Sixty-two elephants are now known to have been killed by cyanide since September in Hwange and in Kariba.

The latest carcasses were found in the Sinamatella area of Hwange, according to the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (Zimparks).

The Bhejane Trust said its investigations on recent poaching incidents in Hwange had revealed that a middleman bought 10kg of cyanide from a mine in Filabusi district, south-east of Bulawayo, and sold it in two batches of 5kg. Each batch cost $50 or R680.

One bag was sold to locals near Sinamatella, where the latest killings occurred. Another bag was sold in Hwange town.

“The middleman fled just before he could be arrested and is now on the run,” the trust, which operates in Hwange and Victoria Falls, said.

Zimparks spokesperson Caroline Washaya Moyo yesterday said she was unaware of the report. She, however, said rangers had recovered 35 tusks from the 22 poisoned elephants, while poachers got away with three.

She added that some of the poisoned elephants were juveniles and their tusks had not fully developed.

Cyanide is readily available on the black market in Zimbabwe, where it is also used in illegal gold panning.

News of the latest poisonings comes just four days after the State-run Environmental Management Agency announced it had decontaminated all areas in Hwange, where cyanide had been used in the last few weeks.

Hundreds of elephants were poisoned for their tusks in Hwange in 2013.

In that incident, cyanide was placed on salt-licks in the dry park, with some reports indicating up to 300 elephants died.