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Rampaging leopard mauls villagers
Horror attack ... leopard pounces on to forest ranger's back
SIX people were left with horrific injuries after a wild leopard went on the rampage in a village in eastern India.
One guard was left severely injured after the animal pounced on to his back and locked its jaws around his neck.
A woman and another man were also attacked as hundreds of frightened villagers clambered on to their rooftops to escape the beast's path.
Predatory ... beast prepares to launch at man
The attack happened after the leopard is thought to have wandered into the crowded Prakash Nagar village near Siliguri, West Bengal, from a nearby forest reserve.
Spooked by curious crowds who noticed it lying near a house, the predator raced through the village attacking as it went along.
When wildlife officers arrived with tranquiliser guns, the animal took shelter in an abandoned house before emerging again for another frenzied attack.
Terrified ... villagers flee to safety of their roofs
It took five hours to restrain the animal, which later died from injuries it received when desperate forest guards used batons and knives to prize it off a colleague.
A 48-year-old man, who witnessed the attack, said: "Had the guards not been wearing helmets, it would have torn their heads apart."
The animal was buried on Wednesday morning.
Stand-off ... desperate guards attempt to tranquilise the big cat
Horror attack ... leopard pounces on to forest ranger's back
SIX people were left with horrific injuries after a wild leopard went on the rampage in a village in eastern India.
One guard was left severely injured after the animal pounced on to his back and locked its jaws around his neck.
A woman and another man were also attacked as hundreds of frightened villagers clambered on to their rooftops to escape the beast's path.
Predatory ... beast prepares to launch at man
The attack happened after the leopard is thought to have wandered into the crowded Prakash Nagar village near Siliguri, West Bengal, from a nearby forest reserve.
Spooked by curious crowds who noticed it lying near a house, the predator raced through the village attacking as it went along.
When wildlife officers arrived with tranquiliser guns, the animal took shelter in an abandoned house before emerging again for another frenzied attack.
Terrified ... villagers flee to safety of their roofs
It took five hours to restrain the animal, which later died from injuries it received when desperate forest guards used batons and knives to prize it off a colleague.
A 48-year-old man, who witnessed the attack, said: "Had the guards not been wearing helmets, it would have torn their heads apart."
The animal was buried on Wednesday morning.
Stand-off ... desperate guards attempt to tranquilise the big cat
