Veteran Big Game Hunter Dies After Elephant, Killed by Gunfire, Collapses & Crushes Him$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '[')b]A professional big-game hunter was crushed to death by an elephant that had been shot, according to reports in South Africa.
Botha was leading a group of hunters western Zimbabwe on Friday afternoon when they stumbled upon a breeding herd of elephants in Hwange National Park, the Telegraph reported.
Startled, three elephant cows charged the group. Botha opened fire, according to News24, but a fourth elephant rammed him from the side, lifting him with her trunk. One of his fellow hunters then fired a shot. The elephant collapsed on top of Botha, killing him, News24 reported.
It is the same park where Cecil the Lion was shot dead by an American hunter in July 2015, sparking an international outcry.
Mr Botha's website says he specialised in hunting lions and leopards with dogs. His website lists various packages available to hunters in Zimbabwe, noting that animals including leopards, giraffes, buffalo and elephants could be hunted.Botha's death comes just weeks after one of his friends was killed by crocodiles during a hunting expedition in Zimbabwe. Scott Van Zyl, 44, was with a local tracker and a pack of hunting dogs when he disappeared in mid-April. A week later, his remains were found in the carcass of a crocodile shot and killed by local authorities, the BBC reported.
