Three African lions at Lion Park private zoo left the cage and tore the guard to pieces, and the man died after the door was allegedly left open overnight on December 17 at about 5:00 a.m. in Faiziobod mahalla (Krasnogorsk) in the Parkent district of the Tashkent province. The lions attacked the guard, 44, when he tried to drive them back, the spokesman to the Prosecutor General's Office, Khayot Shamsutdinov said.
The emergency was discovered by zoo staff at 9:00 a.m. Two lions were returned to the cage using sedatives, but the third lion had to be shot, and a local hunter was invited for this.
Three African lions left the cage as the door was left open.
The lions attacked the guard, 44, when he tried to drive them back. The animals tore the guard to pieces, and the man died.
The incident was discovered by zoo staff at 9:00 a.m. Two lions were returned to the cage using sedatives, but the third lion had to be shot, and a local hunter was invited for this.
At 10:00 a.m., the duty group of the district police department, the district prosecutor, the investigator of the district prosecutor's office, employees of the provinceal ecology department, as well as a special armed detachment of the police department arrived at the scene of the incident.
The scene of the incident was inspected, forensic and DNA examinations were ordered.
In addition, all predatory animals in the park were checked: it was established that they were in their places, and the cages were securely closed.
Wild Life was registered in the Parkent district of the Tashkent province in 2019. Lion Park is located on a plot of 0.96 hectares. The zoo employs five people.
The report notes that this zoo operates on the basis of a permit from the State Committee for Nature Protection from 2019 and a perpetual license issued in November 2024 by the Ministry of Ecology, Environmental Protection and Climate Change.
It hosts 1 brown bear, 1 golden eagle, 1 jackal, 10 adult African lions and 5 lion cubs, as well as other non-predatory mammals and birds.
At present, the investigative and operational group of the Parkent district prosecutor's office, specialists from the Ministry of Ecology and experts from the Tashkent Zoo are conducting the necessary checks and investigations.
The zoo was used only for business purposes on entrance fee, with thousands of visitors coming daily, The animals were under tremendous stress as the visitors were allowed to play with and caress, against a fee, most animals, including the lion cubs, except for lions with safety standards neglected.
A lion's natural life: stolen for entertainment
Lion cubs walking with tourists is a practice of the larger trend of wildlife tourism, which can involve interactions like feeding, petting, and taking photos with animals.
Lions in the park that 'walked' with tourists were denied their natural lives. From an early age, they are normally hand-reared to develop the necessary strong bond with humans. Attractions in the zoo often involved cubs as young as just two weeks old. Naturally, this separation process is incredibly distressing for the cubs, who become fearful and anxious, while the mothers are left distraught by the removal of their young.
Lions should never be tamed or domesticated. Their needs are fundamentally incompatible with human lifestyles. And why should they be forced to share their lives with us when they have evolved over thousands of years to thrive in their natural habitats?
When confined, lions often exhibit stress behaviours such as pacing more frequently than other animals. To keep them docile and safe for tourists, they may be subjected to cruel practices like drugging, restraining, or often declawing and defanging.
