MANEATER LEOPARD SHOT DEAD IN BAITADI Kathmandu, 18 Jan.: The tireless efforts of the people of Talloswarad area in the district paid off finally with a leopard—believed to have killed 15 persons within the past year—shot dead on Thursday, Khagedra Awasthi writes in The Kathmandu Post from Baitadi. People of Aamchaura VDC-6 trapped the maneater that had entered the animal shed of Udaya Ram Bhul early Thursday morning and killed it later. The leopard crashed into the shed at around 2 am apparently to prey on the animals there. Deputy Superintendent of Police Kamal Kharel said that Jaya Bahadur Chand, a local hunter, shot the beast dead with a musket. “The villagers shut the door from outside and trapped the beast. We made a small hole in the wall and shot it dead,” said Harsha Bahadur Chand, an assistant technician at Aamchaura VDC. Local people claimed that the leopard with a white spot in its chest had killed 15 persons, mostly children and women, in eight VDCs in Talloswarad area within the past one year. Twenty-nine-year-old Manju Chand of Aamchaura was the latest victim, in October. Considering the numerous human deaths in its attack, District Administration Office (DAO) Baitadi had decided to kill the beast. The local administration deployed various teams of Nepal Army, Nepal Police, Armed Police Force and District Forest Office employees to kill the beat since mid-September but to no avail. The DAO later announced a Rs 25,000 bounty for trapping the maneater, dead or alive. The villagers heaved a sigh of relief as the animal was killed. “The villagers were living in abject terror. They are relieved now,” said Harsha Bahadur. Meanwhile, the DAO said it would provide the cash to Jaya Bahadur as announced. nnnn PAKISTAN OFFICER PORBING PM GRAFT CHARGE FOUND DEAD Kathmandu, 18 Jan.: - A Pakistani officer investigating a corruption case against the prime minister was found dead in the country's capital Friday in what was likely an act of suicide, police said, AP reports from Islamabad. The body of Kamran Faisal was found hanging from a ceiling fan in his room at a government dorm in Islamabad, according to senior police officer Bani Yamin. "Apparently it seems he committed suicide, but we are sending his body for autopsy to determine the cause of death," Yamin said. Faisal's death came days after the Supreme Court ordered the arrest of Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf and 15 others in connection with an old corruption case that the officer was investigating. The prime minister was implicated in the case when he was minister of water and power. At the time, he oversaw the import of short-term power stations that cost the government millions of dollars but produced little energy. Ashraf has denied the charges against him. Faisal and another investigating officer of the National Accountability Bureau, Asghar Ali, played a main role in the graft probe until they were removed from the investigation weeks ago by Fasih Bokhari, the bureau chairman who was allegedly unhappy with their performance. Pakistan's Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the NAB to arrest Ashraf and 15 others involved in the case. But Bokhari, refused, saying he does not have sufficient evidence to arrest the prime minister. The refusal was seen as the latest clash between the government and the country's top court and has intensified the sense of political crisis in Pakistan. Bokhari said he needed more time to determine whether the premier should be arrested. The top court on Thursday adjourned the hearing in the case for next Wednesday. nnnn