Raipur, Oct 12 (IANS): A man-eater leopard caught in Mahasamund district was brought to Raipur's Nandanvan Zoo to save it from the wrath of villagers, zoo officials said Friday.

Zoo superintendent R.C. Dugga told IANS: "An injured leopard was brought to the zoo from Mahasamund for treatment of its injuries."

"The zoo authority has decided to retain the leopard after its recovery," he said.

According to sources, the leopard sneaked into Teka village of Mahasamund district, some 70 km away from state capital Raipur, sometime back.

After preying on pets and domestic animals in the village, the beast started attacking human beings and recently dragged away a seven-year-old boy to a nearby hill and killed him. The boy's deformed body was recovered later.

This incident had sparked an outrage among villagers who were looking for the leopard since then.

After getting information, the forest officials reached the village and put up a cage with a goat as bait. After hours of wait, the leopard was finally trapped Wednesday evening.