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False reports circulated yesterday morning claiming residents were collecting meat from a dead elephant near Letaba Junction in Limpopo.

The truth, according to police and emergency services, involves a very different animal and a serious injury, reports Letaba Herald.

A male motorist was rushed to hospital yesterday by emergency personnel after his vehicle collided with a hippo on the R71 in Letsitele, Limpopo.

However, in a disturbing turn of events, responders at the scene reported that other motorists and passersby began slaughtering the hippo for its meat before the ambulance had even departed the area.

Police spokesperson Sergeant Ridgewell Rikhotso confirmed that no case has yet been opened at Letsitele Police Station.

He explained that the police cannot open a case against individuals who took the meat, as only the owner of the animal or the provincial Department of Limpopo Economic Development, Environment and Tourism has the authority to do so.

Rikhotso added that it is suspected the hippo may have strayed from a nearby farm or from the Letaba River.

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