Fact check: No one died from the leopard attack in Islamabad

Claim: In an unusual incident, a leopard on Thursday was found on the loose in well-known private housing— Defence Housing Authority (DHA) in Islamabad, attacking the people who tried to capture it. The wild animal was captured by the Wildlife Board in the evening.

However, speculation was rife on social media that one person had died of the leopard attack.

Fact: To address and clarify the different stories, the Chair of the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board, Rina Khan Satti took to Twitter on Thursday, stating that the leopard injured a total of four people including two members of the wildlife board who suffered minor injuries.

She also urged the people to stop spreading rumours and stated that both the animal and the injured people are safe.

For all your help and support. With team work leopard was safely sedated. We request that rumours should stop until further fact finding that will happen in good time. For now leopard is safe & people are safe. Have a good night’s sleep!

— Rina S Khan Satti (@rinasaeed) February 16, 2023

Earlier today, Minister for Climate Change Sherry Rehman also addressed the attack, sharing a video of the leopard.

This leopard who escaped from a private zoo last night In Islamabad is alive and well at our Animal Rescue centre at the old zoo. It’s 6- hour capture op injured one of our Wildlife staff quite badly. Costs to the community and the animal could have been much higher.STOP pvt zoos pic.twitter.com/oygcikA03y

— SenatorSherryRehman (@sherryrehman) February 17, 2023

For now, the Islamabad Police has opened a criminal investigation against an unknown person for “domesticating” a leopard.

The animal was being kept as a pet in an unknown person’s home, the police alleged on Friday in a tweet. “The suspect endangered the lives of citizens by keeping dangerous animals,” it said, adding that legal action will be taken after arresting him soon.