Boar shot after attack on four people

Published on 31/10/2012 00:00

Berlin authorities say they shot and killed a 120kg wild boar after it attacked and injured four people, including a police officer in the German city.

Police said yesterday that the boar bit a 74-year-old man on the back and leg, and knocked a 74-year-old woman to the ground and injured her hip on Monday afternoon.

It also bit a 24-year-old woman before she climbed up on a parked car to safety. All three were treated in hospital.

When a police officer arrived, the boar attacked him and cut his leg before he pulled his gun and killed the animal with “multiple shots”.

A spokesman for the Berlin forestry service said it appeared the animal had fractured its left front leg, probably when it was hit by a vehicle, which would account for it acting aggressively.

It is estimated that as many as 4,000 wild boars live in the forests of Berlin, though they rarely cause problems beyond digging up gardens.