Man found dead in tiger pit at Copenhagen Zoo

Police say a 21-year old man was found dead inside the tiger den at the Copenhagen Zoo with his throat bitten.

Police spokesman Lars Borg says it was unclear how or why the man, a foreign national but who holds a Danish residence permit, had entered the pit, but said investigators could not exclude suicide. His name and nationality were not immediately released.

The man's body was found by a zoo keeper early Wednesday morning, surrounded by three tigers.

Zoo manager Steffen Straede says it is the first time in the zoo's 152-year history that such a thing has happened.

"Everything indicates that the tigers have killed him," said police spokesman Lars Borg. An examination of the body showed the man had been bitten on the thigh, chest, face and throat.

His body was found surrounded by the park's three Siberian tigers.

The man appeared to have entered the tiger area from a low wall surrounding the den and then ending up in the moat inside the enclosure. "He has been in the water and the animals must have seen that and attacked him," Mr Borg said.

Investigators were going through CCTV-camera footage to try to establish the man's path inside the park.

Mr Straede said there were no plans to reassess the zoo's security or to put the tigers down.

"If a person really wants to get in (there), we cannot prevent it from happening," he said.

AP