Man admits to killing elephants
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Police yesterday arrested employee of a local meditation centre after he reportedly confessed to erecting an electrified fence that killed three elephants close to a national park in Prachuap Khiri Khan.
The man was to be taken to the scene to re-enact the crime later yesterday.
Sompong Yapakdee, 46, was interrogated late on Wednesday night until he confessed to putting an electrified fence around the pond to stop elephants from accessing the water. Sompong faces charges of killing protected animals, which is punishable by up to four years in prison and/or a fine of up to Bt40,000.
The three elephants – one 10 to 15-year-old male and two females, aged six to seven and two to three years – were found dead on Wednesday near a pond outside the Kaeng Krachan National Park in Huai Sat Yai sub-district. Authorities initially suspected they died from chemical poisoning or electrocution.
The carcasses were buried after the autopsy on Wednesday night.
