A leopard, which had injured five persons, including two women, in Badarampia village under Hemagir Forest Range Sundargarh district on Tuesday evening, was found dead near a railway track on Wednesday morning.
The carcass was found in a mutilated and severed state. Being informed, the Sundargarh DFO along with other forest officials reached the spot and initiated an investigation to ascertain the cause of its death.
Earlier, residents of Badarampia village in the area said the leopard strayed into the village at around 6.30 pm on Tuesday and attacked the villagers, leaving five of them critically injured.
When the villagers carrying sticks together chased the leopard, it ran back into the nearby forest.
The injured Nalini Biswal, Parameswara Bhoi, Niranjan Bhoi, Kesab Makar and Padmabati Makar were later admitted to the Hemagir hospital.
A couple of days back, another villager was injured in a bear attack while collecting mushroom in the nearby forest.