Lioness kills 5-year-old after snatching him from his grandfather's arms

Published 25 June 2026 · india

A lioness snatched a five-year-old boy from his grandfather's hand and killed him in Gujarat's Amreli district, triggering fear and anger among local residents. Forest

A lioness snatched a five-year-old boy from his grandfather's hand and killed him in Gujarat's Amreli district, triggering fear and anger among local residents. Forest officials later recovered the child's remains from the vomit of one of the captured lions. The incident marks the third lion attack reported in Amreli district in the past month. The incident took place on Tuesday night in Chaturi village of Khanbha taluka, which borders the Gir mountain range. According to officials, five-year-old Jian was walking with his grandfather, who was taking him to feed him milk, when a lioness suddenly emerged from the darkness and attacked. Read Full Story Before the grandfather could react, the lioness snatched the child from his hand and ran into the nearby forest. The grandfather raised an alarm as the child's cries echoed through the village.

After learning about the attack, villagers rushed to the spot carrying sticks and launched a search operation in the surrounding forest. According to the deceased child's maternal uncle, two or three young men from the village tried to rescue Jian from the lioness before the forest department team reached the area. They attempted to drive away the wild animal by attacking it with sticks. However, villagers later found Jian's blood-soaked body about one kilometre away from the village, leaving the family devastated. After receiving information about the incident, a forest department team, including the Deputy Conservator of Forests (DCF) and Assistant Conservator of Forests (ACF) of Dhari Gir East, reached the spot. Officials took the child's body into custody and sent it to Khanbha Hospital for a post-mortem examination. ACF Kapil Bhatia said the incident occurred in the Chaturi revenue area under the Tulsishyam Range.

He said the department immediately launched a major operation to capture the wild animals involved. Two lions were initially found near the scene, and officials tranquilised and caged one lioness. The operation continued through the night and into Wednesday morning. After a nine-hour search, forest department teams captured and caged five lions. During the operation, officials found the child's remains in the vomit of a male lion. The remains have been sent for forensic testing. The department will also collect samples from the other captured lions and send them for examination. The incident has sparked widespread grief, fear and anger among residents of Chaturi village. Locals said lion attacks have become frequent in the area and accused the forest department of ignoring the growing threat. Villagers said lions kept them awake throughout the night even before the latest attack.