Endangered tiger killed by deputy after attacking trespassing janitor at a Florida zoo
An 8-year-old Malayan tiger named Eko was shot dead by a deputy after he attacked a cleaning worker who stuck his arm in the enclosure at a Florida zoo, according to the Collier County Sheriff’s Office.
The tragedy unfolded at the Naples Zoo in the city of Naples on Wednesday night, when the zoo had already closed for the day. The zoo announced it would remain closed Thursday for the investigation and to let its staff “begin the painful healing process.”
Bodycam footage released by the Collier County Sheriff’s Office on Thursday shows arriving deputies finding River Rosenquist, on the floor next to Eko’s cage, screaming in agony — with the 26-year-old’s bloody arm in Eko’s jaw.
“Please help me! Please help me!” Rosenquist can be heard saying.
Rosenquist was a worker for a cleaning company that the zoo employs, according to the Collier County Sheriff’s Office.
Based on the preliminary investigation, it appears that Rosenquist jumped over a fence barrier and put his arm through the fencing of Eko’s enclosure, either to pet or feed him, according to the sheriff’s office.
He wasn’t supposed to be there. The cleaning company’s staff is hired to clean the restrooms and gift shops — not the animal enclosures, the sheriff’s office said. At some point, the tiger mauled his arm.
A Collier deputy kicked the enclosure’s fence, trying to get the tiger to release the worker’s arm, the sheriff’s office said. The gruesome bodycam footage shows the tiger being shot.
Eko released Rosenquist’s arm and went to the back of the enclosure. The tiger died from his injuries. The worker was taken to the hospital with serious injuries.
“Our deputy did everything he could do in that situation and he ultimately made the only possible decision he could in order to save this man’s life,” said Collier County Sheriff Kevin Rambosk in a statement posted on Facebook. “This was a tragic encounter at our world-class zoo facility. We value our community partnership with the Naples Zoo and their focus on conservation and education.”
The Naples Zoo has never had an animal attack or someone breaching the animal enclosures, Naples Zoo spokesperson Courtney Jolly highlighted Thursday morning in a press conference at the zoo.
“We fully support Collier County Sheriff’s Office and what they had to do,” Jolly said.
Collier County Sheriff’s Office is working with state and federal prosecutors to investigate the tragic event and to determine whether charges will be filed against the custodian, the agency confirmed Thursday in a statement.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is also investigating the incident, said FWC’s Division of Law Enforcement spokesperson Shannon Knowles in an email sent Thursday
And Naples Zoo is conducting its own internal investigation, Jolly added in an email sent Thursday afternoon.
The zoo notes that it has made a grief counselor available for workers and plans to reopen at 9 a.m. Friday.
“It is a very sad day at the zoo and we sincerely appreciate the community’s support,” Jolly said at the press conference .
Eko arrived at the zoo from Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle in December 2019 and was an ambassador for his critically endangered species, according to an online video the zoo posted about him last year. On Tuesday, the zoo featured him on their social media pages for Happy Tongue Out Tuesday.
Malayan tigers are the most endangered tigers in the world
It is believed that there are fewer than 300 Malayan tigers in the world — making it the world’s rarest and most endangered tiger, said Wildlife Expert and Zoo Miami spokesperson Ron Magill.
The loss of just one Malayan tiger — which can be found in the wild in the Malay Peninsula and in the southern tip of Thailand— is “profound,” Magill added.
Their biggest threats are poaching and loss of habitat, according to the Naples Zoo.
“The bottom line is that these animals are priceless in many respects because each individual represents such a significant potential contribution to the survival of a species. If we lose a species to extinction, all the money in the world is not going to bring it back,” Magill said.
This story was originally published December 30, 2021 at 12:59 PM with the headline "Endangered tiger killed by deputy after attacking trespassing janitor at a Florida zoo."
