Amreli: A 21-year-old man was mauled to death by a lion near Antaliya village in Liliya taluka of Amreli district on Wednesday, marking the fourth fatal lion attack on a human in the region in less than a month. The victim, Sohil Memon, was attacked in an area along the boundary of revenue land and reserved forest.Chirag Amin, deputy conservator of forest, said, “The group had ventured into the forest to illegally watch lions. They went too close to them which agitated a wild cat and led to the attack.”Amin said they were questioning two friends of the man as to why they ventured inside and went so close to the pride.Sources said the lions dragged the victim some distance into the forest and killed him. The animal reportedly remained seated near the body. Teams from the forest department and Liliya police rushed to the spot. After a prolonged operation, forest personnel entered the area and managed to drive the lions away before recovering the body.The forest department has begun questioning several local youths who were reportedly present at the spot for “lion sighting” to ascertain the circumstances leading to the incident. tnn
