Interview with John Lukas on Mongabay.com a Year after the Devastating Attack on Epulu

John Lukas (center) with wildlife rangers at the headquarters in Epulu

On June 24th of last year, MaiMai Simba rebels, led by an elephant poacher known as Morgan, launched a devastating attack on the headquarters of the Okapi Wildlife Reserve in Epulu, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Over a year later, security and peace has begun to return to Epulu with the armed militias being run out of the Okapi Wildlife Reserve, according to renowned conservationist John Lukas. Working with okapi protection for 25 years, Lukas is head of the Okapi Conservation Project (OCP), which was instrumental in founding the park and helps manage the protected area along with the Institute in the Congo for Conservation of Nature (ICCN). However, the militia that conducted the tragic raid, including its leader Morgan, remain at large.

Read the entire interview at Mongabay.com