Kenya Wildlife Service officers sprung into action to rescue a Hyena cub that was found hiding in a Miraa shop in Nakuru town.
Residents of the Sewarage area in Rhonda Estate, Nakuru town, awoke to news of a stray hyena as dozens of excited townsfolk gathered around the entrance to the miraa shop to see the animal.
The owner of the stall, Fredrick Wamungu, reported that the hyena brought business at the center to a standstill.
“I closed my miraa shop yesterday at 8 pm after finishing my stock. But this morning I was called and informed that there was a hyena on my shop counter,” said Wamungu, as quoted by NTV on Thursday.
Kenya Wildlife Service officers faced difficulty in dispersing the crowd eager to kill the animal. The hyena is believed to have strayed from Lake Nakuru National Park.
Samuel Kamau, a resident of the area, stated that this is not the first occurrence of hyenas being found in the area.
Also Read – KWS Urges Kenyans to Adopt Hyenas to Quell Further Attacks
“The first time it came, we saw it and let them (KWS) catch it and take it back to the park,” said Kamau.
He and other youths were reportedly eager to sell the animal’s organs, influenced by former Roots Party presidential candidate George Wajackoya’s claims during campaigns that the hyena’s testicles could fetch up to Kes. 6 million.
“We should not allow this animal to be released back into the wild, let the chief have his share and the rest of us have our share. Why should the Nyumba Kumi elders stop us from taking this animal?” he posed.
The locals urged the Kenya Wildlife Service to install electric fences along Lake Nakuru National Park to prevent animals from crossing into public land.
Watch a video of the rescue mission below. Video Courtesy/NTV.
