Lion kept as a pet escapes and injures woman and two children
A couple have been arrested after their pet lion was let loose, injuring a woman and two children.
On Wednesday night, July 2, 2025, a lion kept as a pet at a farmhouse in Lahore, Pakistan, escaped and attacked a woman and her two young children—ages 5 and 7—on a residential street. Dramatic CCTV footage shows the lion scaling a concrete wall before pouncing on the family, leaving them with facial and arm wounds. Thankfully, none of the injuries were life-threatening.
The children’s father reported that the lion’s owners did nothing to intervene during the attack. Afterward, authorities arrested three individuals—believed to be the owners—who allegedly attempted to flee the scene in a van with the lion before being apprehended within 12 hours.
Surveillance footage shows a pet lion escape, leap a wall, lunge at a woman, and chase two children in Lahore, Pakistan. All injured were hospitalised but survived. pic.twitter.com/hg8prU2ryY
— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) July 7, 2025
Pakistani laws permit ownership of big cats but prohibit them in city limits without a license, with lions, cheetahs, tigers, pumas and jaguars all legal after registering them and paying a one-time fee of 50,000 rupees ($176; £129) per animal.
The owners lacked the required permit and now face charges under the Wildlife Act, with penalties up to seven years in prison or fines up to $17,500.
Deputy Inspector General of Lahore Police, Muhammad Faisal Kamran, “this unfortunate incident highlights how wild animals are often kept in such places without a license, or permission — with no legal procedures followed — endangering the lives of many people,” adding that “We’ve also captured the lion and transferred it to Wildlife authorities.”
Provincial officials are now conducting a broader crackdown on illegal exotic pet ownership in Punjab. Authorities have arrested five people and confiscated 13 lions so far. The Independent adds that raids on farms yielded a total of 18 big cats seized, and eight suspects arrested; over 580 big cats are believed to be resident in the province.
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