AKIPRESS.COM - Wildlife officials have accused an American hunter of killing Cecil, one of the oldest and most famous lions in Zimbabwe, without a permit after paying $50,000 to two guides.

The lion was lured out of Hwange National Park using a bait and was shot by Walter James Palmer, Johnny Rodrigues, chairman of Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force (ZCTF), told AP.

Will Travers, of the Born Free Foundation, told Al Jazeera that Cecil was first wounded by a bow and arrow but was not killed until 40 hours after he was first wounded.

Palmer, a dentist from Minnesota who received widespread criticism on social media for killing Cecil, said on Tuesday he had hired several professional guides who secured permits for his bow hunting trip and deeply regretted taking the lion.

"To my knowledge, everything about this trip was legal and properly handled and conducted," Palmer said in a statement posted on the Star Tribune newspaper website.

Rodrigues said Palmer paid Zimbabwean hunter Theo Bronkhorst and Honest Ndlovu, a private game park owner, to lure the 13-year-old lion.

Bronkhorst and Ndlovu will face poaching charges on Wednesday in Hwange for the lion's killing on July 1, he said.

Palmer said he had not been contacted by authorities in Zimbabwe or the United States and would assist in any inquiries.

"I had no idea that the lion I took was a known, local favourite, was collared and part of a study until the end of the hunt," Palmer's statement said. "I relied on the expertise of my local professional guides to ensure a legal hunt."