Leopard that strayed into Palghar village trapped

MUMBAI: The leopard that had strayed into a village in Satpati, Palghar on Monday night has been trapped in a cage and taken away by the forest department
The leopard, a three- year -old male, had strayed into the bathroom of a cottage belonging to a villager Vijay Tamore on Monday at around 9.30 pm. The house was lying vacant since four years.
The wild cat was spotted getting into the bathroom by a local who alerted the villagers.The Satpati police reached the village and asked locals to stay away from the wild cat.
Forest department officials reached the village along with two cages to trap the leopard. Locals were asked to return to their homes and maintain silence.
Forest staffers stayed put around the village. In the wee hours the wild cat walked into the cage and remained calm inside it.
As news of the wild cat being trapped reached the villagers, they gathered around the cage. Forest staffers had to cover the cage with a cloth as the wild cat seemed withdrawn on seeing the crowd.
Forest officials said that the leopard will be kept under observation and will be released in the wild.