A zoo lion in Ghana has mauled a man to death after he scaled a fence and landed in its enclosure, wildlife officials have said.

Security guards were first alerted to the scene at around 12pm after patrollers noticed that the victim had climbed over a tall mesh fence and entered the compound housing a lion, a lioness and two cubs.

According to a statement issued by the Forestry Commission, the state agency in charge of wildlife in Ghana, the man was attacked by the lion after he vaulted the security fences of the zoo in the capital, Accra.

Officials said he first jumped over a 10-foot fence before scaling another 20-foot one to enter the lions’ enclosure.

The middle-aged intruder died of his injuries, it added, without detailing his motivation for jumping into the pen.

All four lions remain secure in their enclosure at the Accra Zoo, officials confirmed.

A police spokesman told AFP: “We’re investigating the case to establish how the man got into the restricted area.”

The zoo was first set up as a private menagerie in the early 1960s by Ghana’s first president Kwame Nkrumah. It opened its doors to the public after Nkrumah was overthrown in 1966.

Lions are a top attraction at Accra Zoo, where reinforced mesh fencing allows visitors to view the predators up close.

“The lions have cubs so if you come too close they may feel you are trying to take away their babies,” deputy minister for Lands and Natural Resources Benito Owusu Bio told reporters.

“We ask the public to desist from doing anything like this.”

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