25 February 2021 - 13:00
Merelize van der Merwe shot a giraffe dead and posed with its carcass and heart. File photo.
Image: 123rf/Anna Om
Local trophy hunter Merelize van der Merwe has drawn international criticism after she boasted about getting the perfect Valentine's Day gift, posing for a picture of her holding the heart of a giraffe she had just shot.
According to the Mirror UK, Van Der Merwe's husband spent over R31,000 on the hunt over the Valentine's Day weekend.
She said that it had always been her dream to hunt the animal.
“I’d waited years for my own perfect bull — the older a bull gets, the darker he gets. I love the skin and the fact it’s such an iconic animal for Africa,” she told the publication.