A leopard on the prowl, which was triggering panic among people living near the forest areas off Pathanapuram, has been trapped by Forest Department officers attached to the Pathanapuram office.
It was a male leopard. The big cat had on Saturday night lifted a dog from a house. The half eaten carcass of the dog was found the next day some distance from the house.
Trap set
Forest officers said that the leopard fell into the trap that was set at Kadassery on Saturday night. The leopard fell into the cage after 1 a.m. on Monday, said people living in the area.
A team of forest officers led by the Range Officer, C.K. Johnson reached the spot in the morning and after formalities transported the animal to a deep interior area of the forest a good distance away from where it was trapped and released it.
Forest officers said that the big cat is unlikely to return to the trapped location from where it was released. Moreover the released area is a location which has ample prey base for leopards.
