Panic as Indian puts lion on guard in his Lagos apartment

A house where a lion is on guard on Muri Okunola Street, Victoria Island, Lagos, has now been cordoned off by men of the Lagos State Environmental Sanitation and Special Offences.

The Indian owner of the beast has been invited, and will likely face prosecution.

The house has been on surveillance since Friday when residents petitioned the state government on the presence of the wild animal in the house.

The Head of the task force team, Mr Yinka Egbeyemi, said the Commissioner for the Environment and the Ministry of Agriculture has ordered him to tranquilise the animal on Monday before it is taken to a zoo..

“The lion was found on No. 229 Muri Okunola Street. Our Black Maria and men have been there since Friday,” he said.

“The Indian man rented the apartment and lied to the owner of the house that he wanted to be staying there. He claimed that the house was under renovation and brought the animal there. The neighbours saw the thing and that was how we got a petition from them.

“We have sent him a letter that he should come and talk to us. we will like to know how he got the animal. He will have to tell us why he is rearing a lion in a city; that is a wild animal and anything can happen. So, he may be prosecuted.”