Eko - Where This All Began

Eko is a Malayan Tiger. 
Malayan Tigers are critically endangered, with less than 200 mature individuals in the wild according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The tigers are native to the forests and mangrove swamps in Malaysia and face threats such as habitat loss, poaching for their bones and skin, depletion of their prey, and tiger-human conflict.
 
WHAT HAPPENED TO EKO
After the Zoo had closed to the public on Wednesday, December 29, River Rosenquist, 26, a member of a third-party cleaning service jumped a public barrier fence into an unauthorized space in front of the Malayan tiger habitat. It is believed that he was trying to feed or pet the tiger through the enclosure fence to the point where the tiger was able to reach him and pull his arm into the enclosure.  A CCSO deputy responded to the scene. After the deputy initially tried to get the tiger to release the arm, he was left with no option but to shoot the animal to save the young man’s life. Naples Zoo fully supports the difficult decision that the deputy had to make. It is the same decision that the Zoo's emergency response team would have had to make in this situation. The tiger was confirmed dead by Naples Zoo’s veterinarian.