A rare white Bengal tiger was fed by a zoo administrator while Russian-occupied Ukraine was fed at Mariupol Zoo.
Alexey Melnikov, an experienced animal breeder who previously appeared on Russian TV, was attacked and killed by a tiger named Lucy. Melnikov reportedly failed to move the tiger from the study before entering the fence, but he didn’t know she was still inside.
The tiger believed to have defended her four cubs ejected from the wooden nest and suffered fatal damage. Zoo director Savely Vashura said: “She came out from behind, Bam – the man left. Maybe he was distracted, maybe something else happened – he was just human.
Graphic images show blood in the tiger cage, and Melnikov’s blood-stained clothes have not yet been released. The Russian Commission of Investigation has launched a criminal investigation into the tragic incident.
Melnikov, who worked at the Yalta Zoo in Crimea, talked about his deep love for animals and his dedication to caring for predators. He once said, “I love animals very much – without them I can’t survive.”
The tragedy occurred in other recent fatal incidents involving zookeepers, including the death of an animal breeder in Uzbekistan, who was killed by a lion after entering a cage to impress his girlfriend and a Zookeeper in Romania was killed by a tiger.
An investigation is underway.
