Three of the four lions that escaped South Africa's Kruger Park are shot dead by a farmer

Three male lions that escaped from South Africa's Kruger National Park (You can read the story here) have been shot dead after a farmer found them eating his cattle, officials said Thursday. The farmer shot one dead and wounded another on Wednesday, which had escaped from the National Park over the weekend. Parks authorities armed with rifles then used a helicopter to track down the injured animal and the third lion. South African national parks spokeswoman Janine Raftopoulos said: 'We had to obviously kill the wounded lion because it becomes very dangerous.
'With the last one remaining, because he had come into contact with the farmer's livestock, we assessed the situation and the decision was taken to put (him) down.'
Animals sometimes slip past the barrier fences, especially during the dry winter season. Two months ago, five other lions escaped from the park. Four were re-captured in neighbouring farms and one is still on the loose. Officials said animals usually escaped through dry river beds or holes along the fence.