A Ugandan court sentenced an fisherman to 11 years in prison for a rare and endangered mountain gorilla.
The hunter killed the silver-back gorilla. The gorilla was "my companion" and was 25 years old. She was the largest animal in a herd of gorillas in Boende National Park, after throwing it with a spear in early June.
Boinde is home to nearly half of the world's remaining 1,000,000 mountain gorillas.
The Ugandan Wildlife Authority, in a statement, said that during his trial before a court in Kabale town, the fisherman had admitted that he had killed the gorillas and other animals.
"We are happy that justice is done and my companion can rest in peace," Bashir Hanji, the authority's spokesman, told Deutsche Presse Agentur, adding that he hoped the ruling would be a deterrent "to anyone involved in overfishing wildlife."
The authority had announced earlier this month that overfishing efforts had multiplied in the country in light of the Corona pandemic.
Wildlife guards discovered 367 traps set by anglers from February to June this year, a significant increase compared to the discovery of 163 traps during the same period in 2019.
The Ugandan Wildlife Authority believes that one of the reasons for the increase in poaching is the high unemployment and food shortages caused by the Corona pandemic.