THE ankles of the hind legs of a pygmy elephant found dead in Sg Kinabatangan on Sunday had been cut with a sharp object.

Kinabatangan police chief Dzulbaharin Ismail, in a statement last night, said a post-mortem conducted yesterday could not determine the object used, or whether the injury was sustained before or after the animal’s death.

“Only the back portion of the animal’s decomposed body was found.

“Sabah Wildlife Department veterinarian Dr Bong Ai Yin said only 30% of the carcass remained… the rest of the body might have been eaten by crocodiles or monitor lizards.”

He said the autopsy, headed by Dr Bong and two Wildlife Rescue Unit officers, found that the elephant had died about a week ago.

The carcass, spotted floating in Sg Kinabatangan, was tugged to Sg Koyah Kinabatangan by boat for the post-mortem, which was witnessed by representatives from the Kinabatangan police headquarters, district Wildlife Office and Forestry Department.

Dzulbaharin said a scan of the male elephant’s body did not show any sign of the creature having been shot.

He said the cause of death is still unknown, and four muscle and skin samples will be sent to the Chemistry Department for analysis.

The case, which was being investigated under Section 25(1) of the Wildlife Conservation Enactment 1997, will be reclassified when the full autopsy report is out, he said. – Bernama, November 5, 2019.