Two Zim Parks rangers that went missing after a fight with Zambian poachers they had apprehended at Lake Kariba have been found dead, a spokesperson has confirmed.

Zim Parks spokesperson Tinashe Farawo said the two were found after joint operations by Zimbabwe and Zambia.

“It is with great sadness that our 2 missing rangers have been found dead in Lake Kariba. Zimparks wants to thank stakeholders, sister security depts who worked tirelessly to search our rangers. These are conservation heroes,” said Farawo.

The State run Herald newspaper reported on 2 January that the two poachers were involved in a tussle with poachers as they were taking them to detention.

Along the way however, the Zambian poachers were involved in a tussle with the rangers and over powered them.

Fears that the rangers could have been killed started when the boat that they were using was found on the Lake Kariba banks on the Zambian side stripped of its engine.