A criminal case has been opened after a lion attacked the director of the Taigan Park

A criminal case has been opened into the lion's attack on Oleg Zubkov, director of the Crimean safari park Taigan. This was announced on Monday, June 23, by the press service of the Investigative Committee of Russia for the region.

It is noted that the incident became possible due to a gross violation of safety regulations by responsible employees of the Taigan Park when keeping dangerous animals.

"The investigation conducted inspections of the scene of the tragedy, seized objects and things that are subject to investigation and inclusion in the criminal case <...>, interviewed park staff, established a circle of witnesses, appointed a number of examinations," the agency said in a Telegram channel.

It is specified that the case was initiated under Article 143 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Violation of labor protection requirements resulting in serious harm to human health").

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A lion attacked the director of the Taigan Park on the afternoon of June 22, injuring the man multiple times. Zubkov was later operated on, and his condition was stabilized. The next day, park spokeswoman Tatiana Aleksagina told Izvestia that Zubkov had attracted Lev's attention by the sharp sound of the door closing.

On June 23, Dmitry Dedkov, Deputy Chief Physician of the Republican Clinical Hospital named after N.A. Semashko, told Izvestia that Zubkov's condition remains stably severe. He added that doctors may conduct an "audit" of the most severe wounds and, based on the results of the examination, will make further decisions on his treatment.