Cecil the lion killer Walter Palmer's Florida vacation home vandalized

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Vandals spray painted 'Lion killer!' on the garage door of Walter J Palmer's vacation home in Marco Island, Florida Monday night
The Minneapolis-based dentist has been in hiding ever since he was revealed as the big game hunter who shot dead beloved lion Cecil in Zimbabwe
Palmer has claimed that he relied on his professional guides to ensure the lion hunt was legal

By Ashley Collman For Dailymail.com and James Nye For Dailymail.com and Associated Press

Published: 11:17 EST, 4 August 2015 | Updated: 19:09 EST, 4 August 2015

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Angry vandals defaced the vacation home of lion killer Walter J Palmer overnight on Monday, while also littering the American dentist's driveway with pig's feet in a show of outrage over the death of a beloved lion named Cecil.

Pictures taken Tuesday morning outside the 55-year-old's $1million vacation home in Marco Island, Florida show the garage door spray painted with the words 'Lion killer!' and a handful of orange pig's feet scattered across the front of the house.

Palmer has been in hiding ever since he was identified last month as the big game hunter behind the cruel killing of a well-known lion named Cecil, who was illegally baited out of a protected Zimbabwe wildlife reserve and let to suffer an arrow wound for 40 hours before he was finally brought down.

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Making a statement: A vandal graffitied the words 'Lion killer!' on the garage door at Walter J Palmer's $1million home in Florida Monday night

A pig: The Minneapolis-based dentist has been in hiding ever since he was named as the big game hunter who kille a beloved lion in Zimbabwe last month

Vandalized: In addition to the graffiti, vandals scattered orange pig's feet on Palmer's driveway

Where is he? Palmer has not been spotted at either his Minneapolis home or his Florida vacation home, but he has been in contact with the U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife

On the case: Local police later showed up to investigate the vandalism at Palmer's home

Since then, Palmer has become one of the most hated men in America, as animal rights activists use Cecil's death as a reason to bring down the big game hunting industry.

After receiving tens of thousands of death threats, the married father of two closed his dental surgery and has not been seen at either his house in Minnesota nor his mansion in Florida.

Palmer is a dentist in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington. In a note to his patients, he wrote: 'I understand and respect that not everyone shares the same views on hunting.' He said he would resume his dental practice 'as soon as possible.'

Last week, Palmer issued a statement saying he relied on his guides to ensure the hunt was legal. Two Zimbabweans - a professional hunter and a farm owner - have been arrested in the killing of the lion, an act which has garnered worldwide condemnation.

Cecil the lion killer's Florida home vandalized with graffiti

Reviled: Palmer, pictured left, allegedly lured a lion named Cecil out of a wildlife reserve and then let the animal suffer an arrow wound for 40 hours before eventually shooting him dead. Pictured above with a different lion

Nonetheless, Zimbabwe are calling for the Minneapolis, Minnesota-based dentist to be extradited back to the African country so he can face charges for the illegal hunt.

Oppah Muchinguir, environment, water and climate minister, told a news conference Friday: 'We want him tried in Zimbabwe because he violated our laws. ... Police should take the first step to approach the prosecutor general who will approach the Americans. The processes have already started.'

'Unfortunately it was too late to apprehend the foreign poacher as he had already absconded to his country of origin,' Muchinguri said. 'We are appealing to the responsible authorities for his extradition to Zimbabwe so that he be made accountable.'

There is an extradition treaty between Zimbabwe and the United States.

Closed: Palmer, left, was also forced to close his Minneapolis dental practice after receiving several death threats over the killing of Cecil, right

The US Embassy in Zimbabwe said Friday that it does not comment on extradition matters and the Zimbabwe Embassy in Washington said it had yet to receive instructions.

'We are trying other avenues,' said Richard Chibuwe, the deputy chief of mission at the embassy in Washington. 'Seeking extradition would be the last resort.'

On Friday, officials with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that Palmer had voluntarily contacted them through a representative and that he is cooperating with the agency.

The agency had said the previous day that they had made multiple attempts to contact Palmer, to no avail, and called on him or a representative to contact the agency immediately.

The agency is in the middle of an ongoing investigation into the circumstances surrounding Cecil the lion's death.

Protests outside office of dentist suspected of killing Cecil

Spelling it out: Vanishing act: Protesters laid out stuffed animals to form the word 'killer' on Palmer's Florida driveway last week

Nobody home: Pictured is Palmer's expansive home in Eden Prairie, a suburb of Minneapolis. Neither he nor his family have been seen there recently

Cecil the lion killer's $1m Florda vacation home vandalized

The killing of Cecil gained global attention as the UN General Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution Thursday aimed at combating illegal wildlife trafficking and poaching, the culmination of a two-year campaign led by Gabon and Germany.

'We very much welcome the decision by the General Assembly which will help in the protection of wildlife, of fauna and flora,' Stephane Dujarric, the spokesman for UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said.

Palmer is believed to have shot the lion with a bow on July 1 outside Hwange National Park, after it was lured onto private land with a carcass of an animal laid out on a car, Zimbabwean conservationists have said.

Some 40 hours later, the wounded cat was tracked down and Palmer allegedly killed it with a gun, they said.

The lion's head, which was severed by the hunters, has been confiscated by the wildlife authorities, according to Director of National Parks and Wildlife Edson Chidziya.