Another doctor accused of illegally killing lion in Zimbabwe as officials say Jericho the lion is alive

A SECOND American doctor has been accused of illegally killing a big cat in Zimbabwe as officials said Jericho, Cecil the lion’s ally, is still alive.

Jan Seski. Pic: Facebook Bowhunting Safari Consultants, LLC

ANOTHER American has been accused of illegally killing a lion with a bow and arrow in Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe’s National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority said Jan Casimir Seski of Murrysville, Pennslyvania, participated in an illegal hunt in April around Hwange National Park.

The 68-year-old is a gynaecologic oncologist and surgeon with a practice in Pittsburgh.

A Zimbabwean landowner, Headman Sibanda, was arrested in the Seski case and is assisting police, the authority said.

Messages left by The Associated Press at Seski’s home, and with an answering service for his medical practice, were not immediately returned.

Wealthy doctor ... Jan Seski is a gynaecologic oncologist and surgeon. Picture: Facebook/Bowhunting Safari Consultants, LLC

National Parks spokeswoman Caroline Washaya Moyo said that Seski’s name was gathered from a database.

“When hunters come into the country they fill a document stating their personal details, the amount they have paid for the hunt, the number of animals to be hunted, the species to be hunted and the area and period where that hunt is supposed to take place,” she said.

“The American conducted his hunt in an area where lion hunting is outlawed. The landowner who helped him with the hunt also did not have a have a quota for lion hunting.”

Big-game hunter ... Jan Seski is accused of illegally killing a lion in Zimbabwe. Picture: Facebook/Grizzly Stik

Zimbabwean authorities earlier said they will seek the extradition of Minnesota dentist Walter James Palmer, alleging he did not have authorisation to kill the lion named Cecil a month ago.

On Saturday, Zimbabwe’s wildlife authority said it had suspended the hunting of lions, leopards and elephants in the Hwange area.

Bow and arrow hunts were also suspended and can only be approved by the head of the wildlife authority.

Trophy hunter ... Jan Seski allegedly participated in an illegal hunt in April around Hwange National Park. Picture: Facebook/Bowhunting Safari Consultants, LLC

Jericho the lion alive

Zimbabwe wildlife authorities have dismissed rumours that a second lion, known as Jericho, had been slain after the killing last month of Cecil the lion.

“The lion known as Jericho is still alive and being monitored by Brent Stapelias of the Lion Research Project,” Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority said in a statement.

“It is also important to note that Jericho is a ‘coalition’ partner to Cecil and not a blood related sibling.”

The conservation group Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force had said on Saturday that it had been “informed” of the death of Jericho, described as Cecil’s brother.

Mistaken Identity - Jericho is in fact alive and well and has adopted Cecil's cubs. We were given 3 separate confirmed...

Posted by ZCTF - Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force on Sunday, August 2, 2015

The announcement was swiftly picked up by global media, causing consternation among animal lovers who were outraged by Walter Palmer’s killing of Zimbabwe’s best-known lion, renowned for his black mane, outside Hwange park.

But the Friends of Hwange Trust urged the public to treat the ZCTF’s announcement about Jericho with caution, saying the reports “appear to be untrue”.

UPDATE: Zimbabwean wildlife authority reports that #JerichoTheLion is alive! #relieved http://t.co/TdpsXIn4VE pic.twitter.com/FmI6evh7DX

— Leandri J van Vuuren (@Lean3Jvv) August 2, 2015

Cecil killing sparks outrage

Walter Palmer, a wealthy Minnesota dentist, shot Cecil with a crossbow and arrow earlier this month during a hunt that cost him $US55,000 ($75,000).

His guide, Theo Bronkhorst, has denied allegations that they spent the next 40 hours tracking the wounded animal before finishing him off with a gun, instead saying they found the lion early the next morning and killed it with the crossbow.

Palmer has apologised and said he was misled by Bronkhorst.

Professional Zimbabwean hunter Theo Bronkhorst leaves the Magistrate's Court in Hwange on July 29, 2015. Picture: AFP/Zinyange Auntony

American dentist Walter Palmer said he thought everything about his hunting trip was legal. Picture: Supplied

But Bronkhorst told AFP on Friday that they had “shot an old male lion that I believed was past his breeding age ... I don’t think that I’ve done anything wrong”.

Bronkhorst, who was charged this week with “failing to prevent an illegal hunt”, claimed both he and Palmer had been “devastated” when they realised Cecil was wearing a collar.

Cecil was a popular tourist draw at the park and was being monitored for an Oxford University research project.

Outrage ... protesters leave signs and stuffed animals in front of Dr Walter Palmer's dental practice in Bloomington, Minnesota. Picture: Glen Stubbe/Star Tribune via AP

Zimbabwe called for Palmer’s extradition as worldwide outrage over the shooting swelled. US authorities have opened a probe into the killing.

A giant picture of Cecil was among images projected onto the Empire State Building in New York on Saturday, as Palmer was branded by US talk show host Jimmy Kimmel as “the most hated man in America”.

He has issued a statement expressing regret at the killing but has not appeared in public.

International action ... a giant picture of Cecil was among images projected onto the Empire State Building in New York on Saturday. Picture: AFP/Kena Betancur

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