#Killer of Rafiki, Uganda’s beloved gorilla, sentenced to 11 years in prison

A man who claimed to have killed Rafiki — Uganda’s most beloved gorilla – in self-defense has received an 11-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to the crime, according to a report.

“Rafiki has received justice,” the Uganda Wildlife Authority said, the BBC reported.

Felix Byamukama had said he killed Rafiki when the 25-year-old endangered silverback attacked him, the BBC reported, citing the UWA.

Byamukama pleaded guilty to illegally entering a protected area and killing a gorilla – and also to killing a small antelope, known as a duiker, and a bush pig.

Just over 1,000 endangered mountain gorillas remain in existence, according to the BBC.

The killer previously told the UWA that he and three others had gone to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park with the intention of hunting smaller animals.

Rafiki went missing on June 1 and his body was found a day later.

A post mortem found that the gorilla sustained an injury by a sharp object that penetrated its left upper part of the abdomen up to the internal organs, according to the UWA.

Byamukama was tracked down in a nearby village, where he was found with hunting equipment.

The three other jailed men have denied the charges and are awaiting trial.

Byamukama will serve several sentences concurrently, leading to 11 years behind bars — far short of the life sentence he could have faced, the BBC reported.

A UWA spokesperson told the news outlet that he avoided a maximum sentence because he was not tried in a special wildlife court.

Rafiki was the leader of a group of 17 mountain gorillas that were described as habituated, meaning that they were used to human contact.

Local parks have been closed during the coronavirus pandemic and the UWA said there had been a spike in poaching, counting over 300 incidents during the months of the lockdown, the BBC reported.