Congolese teacher admits killing elephants for ivory

A Congolese teacher has confessed to killing eight elephants for their ivory and was arrested in possession of 25 kilogrammes (55 pounds) of ivory, conservation group WWF said Tuesday. David Ntazam, who teaches French, geography and history, was arrested in the northwestern Congolese city of Souanke in possession of 25 kilogrammes (55 pounds) of ivory, WWF said in a statement. He also had two automatic rifles typically used for poaching, the group said, adding that Ntazam faces up to five years in prison if he is convicted. The WWF said a second suspect, Mempimo Oscar, was also arrested and confessed to poaching, and that police were looking for two more accomplices. Dieudonne Ekoutouba, a regional coordinator of Congo's forest ministry, said 28 people have been arrested in connection with elephant poaching since January. At the end of April, WWF and several other wildlife groups warned that central Africa has lost around two-thirds of its elephants in the past 10 years because of large-scale poaching.