Cambodian man killed by angry elephant

Cambodian wild elephants.

People's Daily Online
August 01, 2010

A Cambodian man was killed by an angry elephant when he was trying to approach the animal with an improper manner, a police office said Saturday.

Khut Sophal, a district police chief said the man who was killed by an elephant was identified as Yang Mark, 52, living in Taing Krasaing Village, Samraung Tong district in Kompong Speu province.

He said the incident happened at around 6 am on Thursday when Yang Mark, the latter victim, was retaliated by an angry elephant after he had swatted the head of the elephant four to five times in a gesture to show that he was not scared of the animal even though he was earlier warned by the elephant owner that the elephant was wild, said Khut Sophal.

According to Khut Sophal, the elephant hooked Yang Mark and knocked him down to the ground soon after Mark swatted it four to five times to the head.

According to the police, the family of the victim did not file any lawsuit against the owner of the elephant, Chan Chok, 42, who is identified as the victim's friend, saying the incident was not caused by the owner but at the victim's fault.

Kompong Speu province is located about 60 kilometers west of Phnom Penh and is known as one of the provinces in the country where still many elephants are inhabited.

Source: Xinhua