Reports say police in Nigeria’s Adamawa state recently arrested and detained a vulture together with a woman believed to be its owner, and spent $86 (£67) on feeding the bird.
According to a report sighted on Citinewsroom.com which is attributed to Daily Trust news site, an elder of the Mahia town of the state said that the last time someone kept a vulture in the community, they became a target for the dreaded Islamist militant group, hence their suspicion that the woman and her vulture might have some links with the terrorist group.
A local police officer who is reported as confirming the arrest and detention pf the vulture said investigations were underway to figure out if the suspicions of the residents have any basis or not. He also bemoaned the rising cost of feeding the vulture as it remained in their custody.
Meanwhile, the Punch news site also reported the Nigerian Conservation Foundation as having called on the police to release the suspected vulture, for fear of animal rights violations.
It is unclear yet if the vulture and its owner are still in police custody or they have been granted bail.