Jugomaro Park fails in court bid to keep tigers
The Limpopo park has been liquidated and 12 tigers are part of the settlement.
GROBLERSDAL - The owners of the Jugomaro Predator Park have failed in an eleventh-hour court attempt to have their wild cats stay on their Limpopo property.
Yesterday, the Fernandes family approached the High Court after about 20 men arrived unannounced, sedated and packed their animals into vans and trucks.
WATCH: 'You're not taking our tigers'
It's understood the park has been liquidated and 12 tigers, including the famous Panjo, are part of the settlement.
Friends and family remained at the park until late last night blocking the entrance to prevent trucks leaving with the animals.
This as their lawyers were hard at work trying to secure an interdict to keep the animals on the property.
Lawyer Elias Tsole said, "They're were not aware that the animals were bought and how the animals were bought. This is the issue we're now attending to."
TREATMENT OF ANIMALS
The family have expressed disgust at how the animals were treated and say it will take years to rehabilitate them after the trauma.
Animal conservationists have raised concerns that the tigers were caged without food or water for over 10 hours.
One tiger had allegedly been shot, but the Fernandes family say wildlife officials have refused to give them information on his condition.
Peeping through the cracks of the van, Rosa Fernandes tried to speak to her cats.
Son Justin said yesterday that he had not received any legal letters and just wanted his cats to be left alone.
"They have darted 12 of my cats, from Siberian tigers, to white tigers, to Bengal tigers. They have been inside the vans since 8 o' clock this morning and they haven't even had the decency to give these animals water."
The park first made headlines in 2010 when it's most famous resident, Panjo the tiger, went missing.
Images: Vumani Mkhize/EWN
