Mpumalanga police probing shooting incident between park rangers and alleged poachers

JOHANNESBURG - Police in Skukuza, Mpumalanga, are investigating a shooting incident between park rangers and alleged poachers at the Kruger National Park.

The body of an alleged poacher was found with a gunshot wound in the park at the weekend.

Preliminary investigations suggest that the man could have been shot during a shootout with field rangers the previous night.

According to reports, three field rangers were on patrol last Friday when they came into contact with three suspected poachers.

The rangers ordered the group to stop, but the suspected poachers responded by opening fire at the rangers, who reportedly fired back, resulting in a shootout.

The alleged poachers are said to have run farther into the dark, and due to poor light, the rangers abandoned their pursuit and returned to the camp.

It’s understood that when the rangers returned to the scene the following morning, they found the body of a man with a gunshot wound, with a backpack next to him.

They found two rhino horns inside the backpack, and police said two other suspected poachers who managed to flee the scene are still at large.