Leading investigator of ivory, rhino-horn trade stabbed to death in Kenya

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Meeshika Sharma
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Kenyan authorities said today that Esmond Bradley Martin, an American conservationist whose dogged investigations of the elephant ivory and rhino horn trades over decades were seen as critical in efforts to protect the threatened species, was found stabbed to death in his Nairobi home.

A family member found Bradley Martin's body with a stab wound to the neck on a bed in his house on Sunday, said Nicholas Kamwende, head of criminal investigations in the capital, Nairobi.

International conservationists were shaken by news of the violent death of Bradley Martin, a distinctive figure  known for his shock of white hair and a handkerchief tucked into his jacket breast pocket. His offbeat appearance belied the passion and rigour that he channelled into his work in far-flung parts of the world.publive-image

He sometimes worked undercover, and at considerable personal risk, while still managing to extract valuable information from traders and dealers.

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The motive for the killing of Bradley Martin, who was in his mid 70s, was unclear. There was no immediate suggestion from authorities of a link to his work, which often delved into the illegal activities of traders and traffickers whose exploitation of African ivory and rhino horn for international buyers, many of them in Asia, has fuelled the mass slaughter of the species.

Till date, Vietnam and China have the main illegal markets for rhino horn, which is viewed by consumers as a treatment for cancer, hangovers and other ailments. It is made from the same substance as human fingernails.

 

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