Leopard shot after mauling 6 people

CAMERAS captured the moment a fully grown leopard pounced on a forestry department official in a village in India.

The big cat mauled six people after straying into the village from a nearby national park and becoming startled by curious humans.

The forest guards eventually managed to corner and successfully tranquillise it but not before it attacked one of their own men.

The incident unfolded in Prakash Nagar village, near Salugara on the outskirts of Siliguri, in Assam, north-east India.

Villagers climbed onto roofs to escape and watched on in horror as forest guards initially tried to fight off the animal with their weapons.

Wildlife officers tried unsuccessfully several times to tranquillise the feline during the frenzied attack. The leopard was eventually shot and tied up before being taken to a nearby veterinary clinic where it later died.