Hippo that escaped last month killed in Mexico

2,200-pound hippo that escaped private zoo shot to death in Mexico after being loose for weeks

(AP)  VERACRUZ, Mexico (AP) - A 2,200-pound hippopotamus that escaped from a private zoo has been shot to death after more than a month on the run in the countryside of southeastern Mexico.

An official with Mexico's animal protection agency said Thursday the hippo was shot at least twice the previous day near a river outside the town of Alamo in Veracruz state. Witnesses told reporters that police fired the shots while trying to capture it.

Enrique Lobato, the animal protection official, says the hippo escaped from a ranch in early September. He says the owner had a permit to keep the animal but faces fines for not keeping it in the right living conditions.