Leopard that ran amok in Islamabad was an escaped pet
A pet leopard escaped from a house in the federal capital of Islamabad and roamed the streets for hours before being shot with a sedation dart, wildlife officials said Friday.
But officials say it is likely a pet not a feral animal that came down the wooded hills that stradle the federal capital.
“According to our initial investigation, it is a pet animal and not wild at all, but he is scared and is constantly roaring,” Tariq Bangash, director of the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board, told AFP.
In videos posted to social media of the six-hour jaunt on Thursday, the young male cat slips between cars before knocking down a man and leaping over a garden fence.
Pakistan last year banned the import of exotic mammals after large numbers were brought in or bred in recent years, causing problems for wildlife officials.
Big cats are seen as symbols of wealth and power in the country.
The leopard on the loose in Islamabad lightly injured four people before it was captured by officials, who took it to the city’s former zoo that was shut down in 2020 over its treatment of animals.
The creature, aged between two and three years old, is now in the company of a brown bear, a tiger and several monkeys rescued by wildlife authorities in recent months.
“We have information that several people in Islamabad and upscale areas of Rawalpindi are keeping wild animals including leopards as pets,” Bangash said.
Police are now trying to track down the owner of the leopard. An FIR has been registered over the matter as well but some suggest that they are seeking to protect its powerful owner.
Islamabad is bordered by the Margalla Hills where a preservation zone has been set up to protect wild leopards in the area.
