Hat tip to Sugar Cookie.
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A post-mortem revealed the animal had been shot 70 times at close range including by one bullet that pierced its left temple, killing it.
Examiners said it is impossible to know in what order the bullets entered its body, or how long it suffered for before dying.
However, they did say that death would have been instant, as soon as it was shot through the temple.
Sabah Wildlife Department director Augustine Tuuga said the animal's death was 'cruel', regardless of how long it suffered for.
Video shows how the body was discovered - mostly submerged in murky brown water and tied to the bank by a string.
The fishermen alerted authorities who had to fetch heavy machinery from a nearby farm in order to get the body on to the shore.
It was then taken for a post-mortem, which confirmed that the tusks had been sawed away, the Straits Times reported.
Police are now hunting for a team of at least four or five poachers which the believe is responsible for the killing.
There are only around 1,500 pygmy elephants left in the wild and the species is completely protected under Malaysian law.
Anyone found guilty of killing one of the animals could be jailed for five years or face a fine up to $60,000.
Pygmy elephant is shot 70 times by poachers for its tusks
WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT: A male Borneo pygmy elephant was found dead in a river in Malaysia last week, and medics have confirmed the animal died after being shot 70 times at close range.
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