Jenny Chung has found the elephant that killed her sister, a well-known veterinarian in New Zealand who devoted years to the elephant's care after she was rescued from a touring circus.
Chung has no anger toward Mila, the 3.5 tonne African elephant with thoughtful eyes. "She never meant to hurt Helen, I'm convinced of that," Chung said this week.
Mila arrived at the San Diego Zoo on November 14 after a journey cloaked in secrecy.
After Helen Schofield's death in April last year, trustees at the zoo she owned and operated near Auckland closed the facility and disperse its animals. Mila was a problem given her size, notoriety and the relative rarity of African elephants in the zoos of New Zealand and Australia.
With regional options unavailable, and euthanasia being discussed, a deal was struck to fly Mila to the San Diego Zoo.
Schofield, 42, was killed by Mila as visitors watched helplessly. Frightened after brushing an electric security wire, Mila used her trunk to grab and squeeze Schofield and lift her into the air. Schofield was giving Mila fruit.