Leopard Mauls 11 in Indian Village

A leopard that strayed into an Indian village mauled 11 people before wildlife officials managed to sedate it with tranquilizer darts. The fully-grown big cat later died of injuries sustained in a fierce battle with villagers, who used knives and stones to beat it back, the AP reports. Six villagers, a policeman and four forest guards were injured, mostly by swipes from the leopard's claws. Workers attempted to drive the cat into a nearby wildlife sanctuary before resorting to darts.

Wildlife officials say the public needs to be better educated about how to deal with wild animals that stray out of the forest, noting that the tragedy could have been avoided if villagers had cleared a passage for the animal to escape. "We found that its four paws were injured as it had climbed onto a wall with glass shards. Afraid and desperate to return to the forest, it was attacking the bystanders," an official tells the Times of India. (More India stories.)