“If it's eatable we are going to braai it now.”

These are the words of Sicelo Sibiya from Mashonamini in Matsulu, outside Mbombela in Mpumalanga, after residents killed a leopard that attacked and left four people injured on Thursday morning.

The leopard is believed to have escaped from the nearby Kruger National Park. Residents said the big cat attacked four people, including a child, in different areas before it was cornered and stoned to death.

Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency (MTPA) spokesperson Kholofelo Nkambule confirmed the incident. 

“We can confirm that we received a notice that a leopard was attacked by the community after it attacked four people. They have been taken to the local hospital.

“Our team will conduct an investigation to determine what could have caused the leopard to behave in that manner. 

“We want to appeal to the communities to immediately report such incidences to the MTPA, which has officials that are qualified and experienced in handling wild animals or report to their local police,” said Nkambule.

The community often kills wild animals found wandering in the area. 

“This leopard was dangerous, the community had to kill it before it killed a person. It attacked a number of people,” said Sibiya.

Another resident Dolly Maseko said she did not see any of the attacks. 

“I only saw it [when it was] dead and was being taken by some community members for a braai.

“We mostly live in fear because the animals are always going out [of the Kruger National Park and game reserves nearby],” said Maseko. 

SanParks spokesperson Ike Phaahla said: “We are aware of the leopard that was found in the town of Matsulu and killed by the community. But as SanParks, we cannot comment over an animal outside of the park because we don't know if it's from the park or nearby game reserves.” 

newsdesk@sowetan.co.za