Leopard that injured three in Hatibandha traced by drone; forest teams from Dhaka and Rangpur join rescue effort

Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) has located, using a drone, the leopard that crossed in from India and injured three people, including a woman, at the Amjhol border in Hatibandha upazila of Lalmonirhat. On Sunday midnight the drone camera spotted the animal hiding inside a patch of jungle near the border.

Lieutenant Colonel Mehdi Imam, commanding officer of Lalmonirhat 15 Battalion, confirmed the matter at 8am on Monday (26 October).

He said the leopard had been identified through the drone at night, local residents had kept guard through the night, and two Forest Department teams had arrived from Dhaka and Rangpur; the animal's location would be briefed to them.

Earlier, on Sunday afternoon, three people including a woman were injured in the leopard's attack near pillar No. 905 of the Amjhol border in Gotamari union of the upazila.

The injured are Sharifa Begum (34), Nazrul Islam (45) and Afsar Ali (40), all of Amjhol village.

Police and local sources said Sharifa Begum had gone into a paddy field in the afternoon to look for her goat. Near the border she saw a leopard attacking the goat; when she screamed in fright, the animal attacked her as well.

Hearing her screams, nearby people rushed in with sticks, and the leopard charged at them too, injuring two more people. Faced with the crowd's chase and two rounds of blank fire by patrolling BGB members, the animal then hid in a paddy field.

The injured were quickly rescued and taken first to Hatibandha Upazila Health Complex. Its emergency department physician Mamun Rahman said that after first aid, the seriously injured were sent to Rangpur Medical College Hospital for better treatment.

Since the incident, thousands of people carrying sticks have kept the area surrounded. After evening, BGB members used loudspeakers to warn residents and sought their cooperation in keeping the paddy field and its surroundings cordoned off so the animal could be captured safely and kept under watch.

As the night deepened, the BGB flew a drone for closer monitoring, and at midnight the camera showed the leopard hiding in a jungle near the border. The Forest Department and law-enforcement agencies are now working jointly to rescue the animal safely.

Mosharraf Hossain, officer-in-charge (investigation) of Hatibandha police station, confirmed the incident and said police and BGB members stayed at the scene all night working to keep the situation under control.