Bhubaneswar: The leopard which had unleashed terror by killing a four-year old boy at Haladigaan village in Nuapada district recently, reached Nandankanan zoo in the evening today after being trapped by forest officials on Saturday.
"The animal will be kept in the zoo quarantine for at least a week for observation as it may be under stress. Then it will be shifted to an enclosure. We will talk to the higher-ups about a special enclosure for the leopard if needed," Nandankanan deputy director Jayant Das said.
The killer animal which had also left two others injured in the same village was shifted to the city zoo in a special cage. A trap was laid in the Haladigaan village in Nuapada district on Friday night with a goat inside it.
The animal spread panic in the district after it had dragged a four-year-old into the nearest forest on May 26 night and mauled the child to death.
The leopard picked him up while he was asleep with his parents on the verandah of their house. His parents found the son missing the following morning and searched for him. They spotted a series of blood stains leading towards the forest. They followed the blood marks only to find mutilated body of the child.
Later on July 9, the animal had attacked 55-year-old Dhanabai Pandey and her granddaughter Chandini (10) in the same village while they were asleep in their house.