A 19-year-old TikTok creator died after a lion attacked him at a private breeding farm in Pakistan, authorities said. (Foto: Instagram)
Taha, a 19-year-old who made TikTok videos, died Wednesday, Nov. 11, after a lion attacked him at a private breeding farm in Pakistan. Influencer Noman Hassan reportedly invited him to the farm to film with the animal, according to The Independent.
Hassan has about 2.5 million Instagram followers and 928,000 TikTok followers, and has posted hundreds of videos featuring big cats. Authorities told The Independent that Hassan took the lion out of its cage and began filming. Taha’s father, Munir Ahmed, alleged in a complaint that the attack occurred at that point. Ahmed took his son to a hospital, but Taha died from his injuries.
The influencer and the farm’s owner were arrested after they allegedly told police Taha had been attacked by a dog, rather than a lion. Authorities shut down the farm. A Lahore police spokesperson said the pursuit of TikTok content could not take precedence over a human life, adding that no one should endanger people for a hobby or entertainment. The spokesperson said investigators would examine the alleged attempt to conceal what happened and all aspects of possible negligence.
Keeping lions, cheetahs, tigers, pumas and jaguars is legal in Pakistan, where ownership of the animals is viewed as a status symbol. Owners must register the animals, pay a one-time fee of 50,000 Pakistani rupees (about £129) and keep the big cats outside city limits.
The country has seen other incidents involving privately owned lions. In January, in the same region as Lahore, a city in Punjab province, an 8-year-old child lost an arm after being attacked by a pet lion at a private animal-breeding farm.
