"Local authorities in Ngapudaw Township, Ayeyarwady Region found a wild elephant poached and skinned with its trunk cut off in Sinma Forest Reserve on Friday. Officials with the forest department, police and administrative authorities were investigating a report by local residents that wild elephants were running in the forest reserve when they found the dead elephant near the Pathein-Mawtin road. “It was killed by elephant poachers. They fled from the scene and police are pursuing them,” Police Lieutenant Colonel Tun Shwe, spokesperson for the Ayeyarwady Region Police Force, told The Irrawaddy. The female pachyderm was around 2.5 m tall, over 2 m long and estimated to be 28 years old. According to the elephant veterinarian of the Forest Department, the elephant was killed by a poisoned arrow. “Elephant poachers had skinned the elephant and were preparing to take it away,” said U Kyaw Myint Tun, administrator for Ngapudaw’s Tin Chaung Village-Tract. “When they saw us, they left their equipment and ran away. We feel sorry that elephants are being poached despite the fact that we are doing our best to prevent elephant poaching.” U Kyaw Myint Tun has won an award from State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi for his elephant conservation efforts..."