Kenya Wildlife Service wardens yesterday thwarted an attempt by poachers to kill a family of the endangered white rhinos at the Lake Nakuru National Park.

Wardens on patrol accosted a group of three men a few minutes after midnight inside the country's largest rhino sanctuary and shot dead one. His two colleagues escaped.

Two endangered rhinos were killed inside the park several weeks ago. John Wambua, the park's senior warden, said yesterday's incident was the third in the past five years.

An M16 gun with seven rounds of ammunition were recovered during the incident. The park has more than 100 white and black rhinos and is the first government managed rhino sanctuary in the country.