The 70-year-old - known as 'The Lion Man' - is thought to have been fixing a fence in an enclosure when a lion went for his neck.
Leon van Biljon is said to have raised the animals as cubs. Pic: Mahala View Lion Game LodgeThree lions have been shot dead after a 70-year-old game keeper - who reportedly raised the animals as cubs - was fatally mauled in South Africa, according to local media reports.
The man, named by news outlets as Leon van Biljon, is thought to have been fixing a broken fence in the animals' enclosure and had his back to the big cats when one went for his neck, according to Netwerk24. The fatal attack took place at the Mahala View Lion Game Lodge in Cullinan, east of the capital Pretoria.
Best Care Ambulance Service spokesman Xander Loubser confirmed to News24 that Mr van Biljon - reportedly known as"The Lion Man" - owned a number of the big cats at the lodge.The lions were shot dead by staff members at the lodge following the incident, News24 reported. Mr Loubser said the decision to shoot the lions"was made by people on the premises in order to get to the deceased" and that the incident was"now a police matter".
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