Police: Zoo survivor told of standing on railing and yelling at tiger

San Francisco Chronicle ^ | January 17, 2008 | Jaxon Van Derbeken

[yorkie]

One of the two survivors of the San Francisco Zoo tiger attack that left a 17-year-old fatally mauled told the victim's father that the three had yelled and waved at the animal while standing atop the railing of the tiger's enclosure, police said in court documents filed Thursday.

Paul Dhaliwal, 19, denied throwing anything into the enclosure or otherwise antagonizing the animal, according to an account contained in police investigators' request for a search warrant in connection with the Christmas Day attack that killed Carlos Sousa Jr. of San Jose.

Police armed with the warrant and seeking evidence that the men had taunted the tiger searched the 2002 BMW belonging to Dhaliwal's 23-year-old brother, Kulbir, on Wednesday. They also reviewed the brothers' cell phones for any photos they might have taken before the tiger attacked.

Police said they had recovered messages and images, but apparently nothing incriminating in connection with the tiger attack. Investigators seized a small amount of marijuana as well as a partially filled bottle of Grey Goose vodka from the car, according to the inventory that police submitted from the search.

They also found a kit commonly used to defeat drug testing, which included a vial of unisex synthetic urine, police said. Paul Dhaliwal was on probation stemming from a drunken driving incident and crash that occurred before the attack.

[yorkie]

Sorry - the word should be ‘standing’. It’s the danged computer’s fault. ;-(

[doc1019]

Yep, stand in front of a 300 lb carnivore and wave your arms! Fence or no fence … kitty will attack.

[Ruy Dias de Bivar]

****Sorry - the word should be ‘standing’. It’s the danged computer’s fault. ;-(***

It’s a poor workman who blames his tools. sarc/off.

[pandoraou812]

Wow you never make mistakes..How totally impressive Not.

[pandoraou812]

Yorkie can you come to the other thread & please post this info...thanks! hugs ~Pandy~

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1955200/posts

[Blood of Tyrants]

Looks like they got exactly what they deserved.

When I was a child, some of hte older neighborhood booys used to love to taunt our German shepherd, who was kept on a chain. It drove Nicki (the dog) nuts. So one day my dad unhooked Nicki and attached him back with a small pieces of wire.

It was only a little while when these same jerks came by yelling at and stomping their feet at Nicki. On the very first lunge Nicki broke the wire and took after them. It was all butt holes and elbows with Nicki about half an inch from biting the seats of their pants off. He chased them a good 100 yards down the street and never did actually bite them. He came back looking very proud of himself and my dad and my brothers and I laughed for a ten minutes. They stopped teasing Nicki.

[Mr. Brightside]

An autopsy conducted by a zoo veterinarian on the Siberian tiger after police shot it to death showed that the animal had been "very determined to get out," Matthews said. Its claws were broken and splintered by clambering up the concrete moat wall, Matthews quoted the veterinarian as saying.

"This behavior may be consistent with a tiger that has been agitated and/or taunted," Matthews said.

So is the zoos policy is only to secure "non-agitated" animals?

[Mr. Brightside]

Looks like they got exactly what they deserved.

Now we can only hope that the zoo and zoo officials get what they deserve.

[yorkie]

"It’s a poor workman who blames his tools."

Aha. You are right. But, then, I'm a 'workwoman'. ;-)

[RDTF]

they are jerks but never thought the cat could get them. We all rely on the facility to keep us safe. So did the tiger.

[Senator Goldwater]

Now we can only hope that the zoo and zoo officials get what they deserve.

---

To be left alone from the ambulance chasers?

[IllumiNaughtyByNature]

the three had yelled and waved at the animal while standing atop the railing of the tiger's enclosure,

Paul Dhaliwal, 19, denied throwing anything into the enclosure or otherwise antagonizing the animal,

WTF?

[Ruy Dias de Bivar]

***Wow you never make mistakes..How totally impressive Not.***

I NEVER make mistrakes!

I was once conceited.
So I went to a Psychiatrist.
Now I’m perfect. ;-)

[Mr. Brightside]

No. We can hope that zoo officials be held responsible for their failed tiger enclosure, their failure to respond to near escapes over the last 40 years and for impeding medical/police assistance to the victims.

[don-o]

Ctrl C
Ctrl V

Wax on
Wax off

[Mr. Brightside]

We all rely on the facility to keep us safe

This zoo failed miserably. And I think we all would demand more accountability from the zoo if the tiger attacked other zoo visitors.

[Rte66]

So, they did invade the tiger’s territory, in a manner. In Tatiana’s airspace, they would’ve looked like giants. Talk about feeling threatened, I’m sure she did.

[RDTF]

yep

[Rte66]

Oh, wait a minute - the “railing” meaning the ledge of the moat? I was thinking this meant the chain link fence - but it must be the little ledge that Jack Hanna earlier talked about being one that she could’ve grabbed onto to pull herself up and out.

Yikes, that means they had traversed the whole “no man’s land” between the fence and the moat.