The leopard that had been visiting an apartment in Begur for the last one week was finally trapped on Monday morning, bringing relief to residents who were worried after the big cat was caught entering the building on the CCTV camera on three separate occasions.
Forest officials had set up a cage near the apartment, off Koppa-Begur Road, January 24 but were unable to trap the animal for two days. “Later, we set up three more cages in the 30-acre space overgrown with bushes and shrubs. We finally saw the animal trapped on Monday morning,” an official said.
The big cat was taken to the rescue centre in Bannerghatta and is expected to be released in a forest after the necessary check-ups in the next two days.
The pressure to trace the leopard had increased after the third sighting, with the department even conducting a drone survey in the area.