A 44-year-old zookeeper from Uzbekistan suffered a fatal attack after entering a lion enclosure at a private zoo in Parkent to film himself with the lions.
The tragedy occurred on December 17 when F. Iriskulov, working a night shift, entered a cage housing three African lions. The video footage from his phone reveals that he had unlocked the enclosure and called the lions by name. Although the lions initially appeared calm, they soon became alert and advanced towards him. The recording ends with his screams as the lions attack.
Four hours after the incident, authorities found his partially consumed remains. Following the event, the zoo reported that one lion was euthanized, and the other two were sedated after they escaped the unlocked enclosure.
Despite initial police statements suggesting the lions had escaped and attacked Iriskulov outside the enclosure, video evidence shows he willingly entered their space. The incident has raised serious concerns about safety measures in private zoos and the dangers of human interaction with wild animals.
