Zambian authorities say Delia Owens, author of the novel "Where the Crawdads Sing," may be a possible eyewitness, co-conspirator, and accessory to felony crimes and is wanted for questioning in connection with the death of a man whose 1996 killing was caught on camera by a documentary crew.
The revelation was made by The Atlantic's Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg, who claims in a report published Monday that Owens, whose novel is the basis of a Reese Witherspoon movie opening this week, and her former husband Mark embarked upon a mission in the 1990s to save elephants from poachers and corrupt officials.
According to the report, they raised, trained, and outfitted a local militia with guns, knives, and other weapons in order to do their bidding, using ruthless tactics including alleged torture, kidnapping, and murder against those considered a threat to the reserve they patrolled.
In 1996 a man who may have been a poacher was shot to death while he lay on the ground, and his execution was filmed by an ABC News crew. While the shooter is not seen on camera, Goldberg implies that Mark Owens was behind the killing. Goldberg also suggests this may not be a first for the activist.
In 2010, Goldberg wrote an article for The New Yorker, which is referenced in his piece for The Atlantic, in which one of the ABC cameramen claimed Mark Owens fired the fatal shots. Goldberg said that, based on the conclusion of a subsequent interview with a detective in charge of the investigation, Mark Owens "with the help of his scouts, placed the victim's body in a cargo net, attached it to his helicopter, and then dropped it into a nearby lagoon."
The body was never found and the investigation stalled, former Zambian National Police Commissioner Graphael Musamba told Goldberg.
It's believed that Mark Owens may be living in Idaho. While he and Delia Owens have not been formally charged with a crime, they are wanted by Zambian authorities for questioning related to the on-camera death as well as other activities during their time in Africa.
Mark Owens is the person authorities are most interested in speaking with, but they also believe Delia Owens "should be interrogated as a possible witness, co-conspirator, and accessory to felony crimes."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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