What began as an ordinary workday at a liquor store in northern India quickly turned into a terrifying fight for survival when a leopard unexpectedly entered the shop and attacked an employee, leaving stunned witnesses scrambling as the dramatic encounter unfolded.
The frightening incident, captured on the store’s security cameras, has drawn widespread attention online while renewing concerns over dangerous encounters between humans and wildlife.
According to a video shared by CNN on Instagram, liquor store salesman Sanjay Gurjar arrived at work in Rajasthan to clean the store and complete the day’s accounts. Unbeknownst to him, a leopard had followed him into the building.
Moments later, the situation took a horrifying turn.
Security footage showed the leopard suddenly leaping over the store counter before lunging at Gurjar without warning. The attack erupted inside the confined space of the shop, leaving the salesman desperately trying to escape as the animal continued its assault.
ALERT: Leopard hops over the counter of a liquor store and mauls a man who luckily escaped its grasp.
Sanjay Gurjar was working at a liquor store in Todaraisingh, India, when the leopard leaped over the counter and grabbed onto him with its sharp claws.
Gurjar managed to escape… pic.twitter.com/HIkwpffnTJ
— E X X ➠A L E R T S (@ExxAlerts) July 22, 2026
The shocking footage has since circulated widely online, with many viewers expressing disbelief at the dramatic encounter.
Despite suffering injuries to his face, chest, and both shoulders, Gurjar managed to break free from the leopard and flee the store. His quick actions after escaping proved critical in preventing the situation from becoming even more dangerous.
According to CNN, the store owner said the injured salesman immediately pulled down the shop’s metal shutters after reaching safety outside, trapping the leopard inside before it could escape into the surrounding neighborhood.
The decision effectively confined the animal inside the business until wildlife officials could respond.
Forest rescue personnel later arrived at the scene, tranquilized the leopard, and safely removed it from the liquor store.
Meanwhile, Gurjar received medical treatment for the injuries he sustained during the attack. The store owner told CNN that although the salesman suffered wounds to his chest, face, and both shoulders, he is recovering well.
The extraordinary rescue quickly attracted attention across social media, where many users praised Gurjar’s composure under extreme circumstances.
One commenter wrote, “Wow, talk about a wild workday! Major props to that shopkeeper for staying so calm under pressure.”
Another added, “Glad the guy will be ok. That being said, kinda the coolest story ever now.”
The online reactions reflected both the shock surrounding the incident and admiration for Gurjar’s ability to escape while preventing the leopard from reaching the street.
The liquor store attack comes as India continues to experience other dangerous encounters involving leopards.
According to The Indian Express, a separate incident in Pune’s Shirur taluka ended in tragedy after a five-year-old girl was reportedly taken by a leopard while she slept beside her family near a cattle shed.
Family members, police officers, forest officials, and local villagers searched for the child before she was found in a nearby sugarcane field. She was transported to a hospital, where she was declared dead.
Following that attack, officials placed nearby wards on heightened alert and installed trap cameras and cages in an effort to capture the animal.
The article notes that the fatal incident is the latest in a series of human-leopard encounters in the region as wildlife and expanding communities continue to overlap.
Similar encounters have also occurred outside India.
In July 2024, two men were attacked by a leopard at South Africa’s Hoedspruit Air Force Base, located along the edge of Kruger National Park. One victim, an air force member, was attacked while on a morning run, while a civilian employee was injured in a separate encounter while walking around the base.
Both men suffered scratches, were hospitalized, and later recovered from their injuries. According to the BBC, the leopard was eventually captured and relocated to a wildlife sanctuary approximately 100 kilometers away.
Wildlife officials said it is not unusual for leopards to be seen near the area because they are agile enough to cross park boundaries despite existing fences.
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