Leopard kills man in Amreli village

25-06-2012
Leopard kills man in Amreli village
Times of India
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/rajkot/Leopard-kills-man-in-Amreli-village/articleshow/14381220.cms

A leopard attacked and killed a 40-year-old man, who was sleeping on the outskirts of Dudhala village in Dhari taluka of Amreli district late on Saturday night.

According to forest officials, the deceased was identified as Hakabhai, a mentally challenged person. "Locals said that Hakabhai used to roam around in Dudhala and Jira villages and lived a vagabond life. He used to sleep anywhere in the village. His body was found on the outskirts of the village,'' said a senior forest official.

According to Anshuman Sharma, deputy conservator of forests (Gir East), Dhari division, the incident may have occurred after 10 pm on Saturday as locals told them that they had seen the victim at this time in the village.

"He used to stay anywhere and people gave him food. He was mentally challenged,'' Sharma said.

Forest officials said that sign of Leopard was found from deceased's body. "It is likely that the leopard attacked Haka while he was asleep,'' said forest official.

According to officials, leopards have killed at least 10 people in the last six months in Amreli and Junagadh districts.

Meanwhile, a one month-old baby was killed by a dog in Kesariya village in Una taluka of Junagadh district. The incident came into light on Sunday morning when the baby's family members did not find her in the house. Her body was found from nearby area.

"Earlier, we thought that it might be a leopard that killed the baby. But, our rescue team and trackers did not find any sign of leopard in the area where this incident occurred. Locals have never spotted any leopard in this area. In fact, we found some evidence suggesting that a dog dragged the baby and killed her,'' said Sharma.

Forest officials said that deceased' family members were staying in a makeshift huts and sell bangles in the villages.