France: Man in custody for allegedly acquiring a stolen black panther

A black panther was spotted walking on the rooftops of homes in northern France near the city of Lille after being stolen from a zoo on September 19. A man suspected of keeping the black panther as a pet which was rescued from the rooftops was reportedly questioned by the police on October 1. The young wild animal who is expected to be six months old and weighing 25-30 kilograms escaped through a window of a private apartment. The panther was then tranquilized with a dart and later taken away in a cage only to be stolen again. 

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The alleged man

The man was suspected of illegally acquiring the protected species and even cut off his claws. According to the prosecutor's office in the city of Lille, the man in custody is allegedly running a business exploiting “non-domestic” animals or their parts. Further, they also added that it was too early to consider the possibility of any animal trafficking charges. Two weeks ago, the emergency workers caught the animal lurking around residentials gutters leaving the authorities unclear from where it came. 

Read - Black Panther Spotted On Rooftops Of French Town Near Belgium Border

Images of black panther

In August, images of the black panther were posted across the front pages after it was rescued from the rooftops and then being stolen from a zoo in Maubeuge near the Belgian border. Arnaud Decagny, the mayor of the zoo reportedly said that the authorities are doing “considerable efforts” to force locks and avoid security systems. The police officials have been looking for the suspect, however, he handed himself in evidently on the advice of his lawyer. The zoo personnel was also concerned about the health of the young panther which according to them is “delicate” because the ink-black feline lacks strength. The panther will now be transferred to center specialized rehabilitating wild animals that have been domesticated. 

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(With inputs from PTI)