Tiger mauling leaves zoo owner dead in Italy

A tiger attack earlier this week left a 72-year-old man dead at a Zoo in Italy.

The man, Mauro Lagiard, was the owner of the privately owned zoo near Turin city, according to Reuters. The closed-down zoo was home to the three tigers who attacked Lagiard, including the one six-year-old tiger who responsible for mauling him when he entered the cage to feed the tigers.

The first to see the attack was Lagiard’s wife, Carla Agosteo, who came at the 6-year-old tiger with two large sticks, forcing it back into its cage, according to Yahoo News. She then signaled the alarm, but by the time emergency services arrived at the scene, Langiard was pronounced dead.

Agosteo, 73, told police that, "The tiger pounced on Mauro from behind, sinking his claws into his shoulders and then began to maul him, it was quite dreadful."

When the zoo was first closed back in 2009 because of financial troubles, the owners, including Lagiard were unable to relocate the nine tigers and one leopard kept there. The animals have only given the owners trouble since the closing, as the same tiger attacked Lagiard two years ago, leading to an eight-month hospitalization.

Local residents, officials, and environmental groups have additionally protested and complained about the tigers, when the zoo was officially evicted from the private park three years ago, because the animals were unsterilized, had recently spawned new cubs, and residents feared their easy ability to escape.
The nine tigers and a leopard are now scheduled for a transfer to a nearby safari park as a result of the recent attack.

Anna Balangelo, mayor of San Pietro Val Lemina where private zoo is located, believes that Lagiard's death was "a tragedy waiting to happen.” As a result of the mauling, the animals and Lagiard’s wife will soon move to new homes.