India, Feb. 11 -- Poachers armed with guns drive away forest guards

A wild male elephant was gunned down in the Hindol forest range of Odisha's Dhenkanal district February 10, 2021 and its tusks hacked off during a brutal attack by poachers, officials said.

A group of poachers using guns were believed to have attacked the elephant from close range. As a result, around 10 bullets pierced the animal's body, Prakash Chandra Gogineni, the divisional forest officer of Dhenkanal forest division said.

Their motive was poaching; they removed the tusks of the elephant, he added.

A team of forest guards reached the spot at around 6.30 pm February 10 when they heard gunshots in the forest. Around 10 poachers armed with guns fired at the forest p...