Poachers kill rhino at French zoo

iStock/Thinkstock(PARIS) — Poachers killed a rhino and cut off his horn after breaking into a zoo in the Thoiry commune near Paris, France, BBC News reports. It is believed to be the first time poachers targeted a live rhino in a European zoo.

Zoo keepers found the rhino, a four-year-old named Vince, Tuesday morning having been shot three times in the head. Poachers chopped off his horn, but his second horn was left on as the poachers were apparently disturbed. The zoo says a couple pounds of the horn could be worth up to $50,000.

Two other white rhinos, 37-year-old Gracie and five-year-old Bruno, were able to avoid the poachers according to the zoo.

Trade in ivory and horns was outlawed in France in 2016 according to BBC News.

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