Leopard Drags Away 5-Year-Old Girl Resting On Grandmother's Lap; Body Found In Forest

The body of a five-year-old girl has been found after a leopard attacked and dragged her into a forest in India.

The girl was reportedly resting on her grandmother's lap at their farm in Golhana village in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh on Thursday evening when the big cat snatched the child away. The village is situated close to Vantangia forest under Murtiha forest range of Katarniaghat Wildlife Division.

After the child was dragged away, the grandmother alerted the villagers, who in turn informed the forest department. Officials arrived at the scene and faced protests by the villagers, who accused them of slow response.

The irate villagers pelted stones at the officials, attacked them with sticks and iron rods and vandalized their vehicles. Six officials sustained injuries during the incident. Shortly, a police team arrived at the scene to control the situation, news outlet The Times of India reported.

One of the forest officials was reportedly undergoing treatment at the hospital and was said to be in critical condition.

Divisional Forest Officer Yashwant Singh told Times Now News that one of the officials had been held hostage and beaten up by the villagers.

Two other officials, who were reported missing Thursday evening following the commotion, returned the following morning and claimed they had been hiding in the forest to escape the villagers.

According to Superintendent of Police Vipin Mishra, the body of the child was found in the forest Friday and was sent for an autopsy.

Meanwhile, Singh said the attack on the officials by the villagers was a serious matter and a case would be filed in connection with the incident.

In a similar incident earlier this month, an 11-year-old boy was attacked and killed by a leopard in a village in the same state. The animal pounced on Ankit Gautam while he was collecting fodder near a cane field and dragged him into the field.

The family members began searching for the victim when he did not return home for several hours. His partially eaten body was later found in the field. Forest officials arrived at the scene and confirmed that the victim had been killed by a leopard after noticing the pugmarks near the body.