Escaped Jos Lion killed

A lion which escaped early Wednesday
from a wild life park in Jos, Plateau
State, has been killed.

An official of the Plateau State Ministry
of Tourism, in charge of the park,
Abdullahi Abe, told PREMIUM TIMES the
animal had been shot dead.

He said the body of the lion would be
taken to the National Veterinary
Research Institute, Vom, Jos south Local
Government Area the state, for
preservation.

Mr. Abe said the lion did not harm
anyone as speculated. He did not give
further details.
The police spokesperson, Abuh
Emmanuel, said officers had hoped to
recover the lion alive.
“We had dispatched our men with
experts in search of the lion with the
intention to recover the animal alive,”
he told PREMIUM TIMES.
The escape of the lion caused panic in
the town as many residents stayed
indoors for fear of being attacked.

Docars Gwani, a resident at the federal
low cost housing estate near the park,
said they were afraid that the animal
could attack anyone.

The general manager of the park, John
Doy, had said the lion, which had been
kept since 1972, “slipped through the
gate of the cage when it was opened for
its routine feeding”.

“The animal is still within the vicinity of
the park but our fear is that the park is
not fenced,” he had warned.