Drug baron’s hippo herd to be ‘invasive’
HIPPOS descended from a herd illegally imported by drug lord Pablo Escobar are to be declared an invasive species in Colombia.
The South American country’s government is demanding officials come up with a plan for how to control the African animals, which can weigh as much as 1,800kg and are a threat to local species.
Cocaine baron Escobar smuggled the animals in to Colombia in the 1980s.
He kept them in a private zoo on his vast estate, Hacienda Napoles.
Since Escobar’s death in 1993, the hippos have bred and set up home in rivers.
A decade ago they even began showing up in local town Puerto Triunfo.
Projections show the population of 130 could swell to 400 in eight years.