The death of 15-year old 'Gustavito' the hippopotamus that was 'cowardly' killed is under investigation

The Police in El Salvador are investigating a "cowardly and inhumane" attack at the National Zoological Park that killed a hippopotamus named Gustavito.  

The Ministry of Culture in a statement said the 15-year-old hippo suffered "multiple blows on different parts of the body" from "blunt and sharp objects" in Wednesday's attack.

The San Salvador zoo said veterinarians had been caring for the animal around the clock since discovering that he had been attacked. Despite their efforts, he died on Sunday. The zoo plans to perform a necropsy to determine the exact cause of death. 

Late Gustavito is one of the zoo's main attractions, he had been in El Salvador for more than 12 years after being bought from Guatemala. As a result of the attack, authorities have doubled the security at the zoo.