Eko, an eight-year-old Malayan tiger, was found with the man’s arm in its mouth at Naples Zoo.

The sheriff’s deputy tried to get the animal to let go of the arm but was "forced to shoot", officials say.

They said the cleaner, who was in an "unauthorised area" and may have tried to pet or feed the animal, had serious injuries and was airlifted to hospital.

The man, in his 20s, had entered the area, near the tiger enclosure, after the zoo had closed for the day, the sheriff’s office said.

The cleaner, who was working for an outside company hired by the zoo, appeared to have put his arm through the enclosure’s fencing.

By Michael Reyes

Amante de la República Dominicana, y cree en solo compartir los hechos y nada más que los hechos. Vive en NY, viaja a Miami, Los Ángeles y Santo Domingo con regularidad.