Ivory poacher’s sick boast: I killed 70 elephants

(Getty images)

In the latest example of how illegal poachers are bringing elephants to the brink of extinction, a Kenyan poacher has reportedly boasted how he brutally slaughtered more than 70 elephants in a decade.

John Sumokwo, 33, told a newspaper how the elephants “screamed as they died” adding “to me it was just business.” He described how he speared the animals through the heart before hacking off their trunks, skinning their heads and cutting off the ivory with an axe.

The convicted poacher told The Mirror that the elephants he slaughtered would then be sold to dealers for a fraction of the price they can fetch on the black market.

His revelations come just days before Britain hosts world leaders for an international summit on how to combat the killings and end the illegal trafficking. Some estimate the trade to be worth around £4.5billion.