A JAGUAR has killed a boy after tearing his face off during a brutal attack in the Brazilian Amazon.
Dierlissom Oliveira Paiva, 10, died after the big cat’s claws and teeth savagely tore across his face in a rural area near Brasil Novo.
Dierlissom Oliveira Paiva died after the big cat’s claws and teeth savagely tore across his face[/caption]
A jaguar was found dead after the 10-year-old’s body was found[/caption]
The schoolboy disappeared from a forested area where he was fishing in a pond on Wednesday afternoon, prompting his dad and neighbours to go and look for him.
But when they arrived, they found items of clothing and traces of blood on the ground.
Police in Para state, northern Brazil, are now investigating Dierlissom’s death.
A little over 50 metres away, they found the youngster’s body with his face completely disfigured.
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The body was sent for a post-mortem examination in nearby Altamira to determine the cause of death.
The suspicion is that he was brutally savaged by a jaguar, with locals reporting that jaguar sightings are common around the pond.
In a statement, the Civil Police said: “According to witnesses, close to the body there were large animal paw prints and signs of a possible jaguar attack.”
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There were also reportedly signs the body had been dragged.
The boy’s aunt, who chose to remain anonymous, told local media: “He was very close to us, a very happy boy.”
According to some reports, following the boy’s death, locals went out and hunted the big cat responsible in revenge.
The animal – an extremely rare black jaguar – was allegedly found with a deep cut in to its neck.
Other reports, however, stated that no animal had been found nearby.
The child and his family had reportedly been living in the rural community for just six months.
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A 2015 report said around 600 black jaguars were thought to exist in the wild.
The investigation is ongoing.
