Man killed in tiger attack identified as William Chapman

The man who was killed by a tiger after entering its enclosure at a wildlife park has been identified as William Chapman, the BBC understands.

Chapman entered the enclosure at Yorkshire Wildlife Park near Doncaster shortly after 13:30 BST on Saturday and was pronounced dead at the scene, according to South Yorkshire Police.

An eyewitness described seeing him wearing headphones and "pacing around" near the enclosure before he went in and was attacked. Police confirmed he was visiting the park on his own.

A force spokesperson said his family was aware and was being supported by specialist officers. The park was evacuated after the incident and remains closed as investigations continue.

It is understood Chapman, who was in his mid-20s, was a former pupil of the Jackie Palmer Stage School in High Wycombe.

As a child, he appeared in the ITV production May Contain Nuts alongside Shirley Henderson, best known for playing Moaning Myrtle in the Harry Potter films, and Darren Boyd.

He also portrayed Edward Jenner in the BBC series True Stories.

City of Doncaster Council has also launched a health and safety investigation into the death, which a spokesperson said was "in line with our statutory duties".

Yorkshire Wildlife Park said their "thoughts and heartfelt sympathies" were with the man's family and confirmed the rare Amur tiger, called Altai, remained in the enclosure and would not be euthanised.

Chapman was reported to have entered the enclosure after climbing down from a walkway.

Those who saw the attack said some witnesses had tried unsuccessfully to distract the tiger.

A video posted on a social media account believed to be Chapman's appears to show the moments before the attack.

In the footage, shot on a mobile phone, the inside of the enclosure can be seen as he approaches the tiger - perched on a wooden platform - across a patch of grass.

The account has now been removed.

A spokesperson for the Born Free Foundation, which campaigns to phase out zoos, called for an "urgent review" into "how the man managed to enter the enclosure and what happened next".

Dr Campbell Murn, a previous member of the government's zoo expert committee and lecturer at the University of Reading, said while it was a tragic incident, determined people could get inside zoo enclosures.

"I view it in the same way a determined thief will get into somebody's house or somebody's car and despite the best security systems and enclosures sometimes these things happen," he said.

Ella Ford, 24, from Moreton, Wirral, had visited the park with her boyfriend and filmed the tiger moments before the attack.

She described seeing Chapman by the tiger enclosure "pacing around with his headphones in".

A few minutes later, she saw he had "climbed up onto the barriers".

A woman was close by talking to him, she said, before "he jumped in and crawled in front of the tiger, where the tiger was perched and just lay there".

Ford said she then witnessed the tiger grab hold of him, and he was "shouting for help".

She estimates around 15 to 20 people were on the enclosure's raised visitor walkway before staff quickly evacuated the area, and shortly afterwards, the park.

She described members of the public as being "confused, like what on earth's going on?"

"I just know some man was obviously trying to bang on the fence to try and deter the tiger away, but it obviously wasn't doing anything," she said.

Karmelle Pelham, 39, from Worksop, had been enjoying a family day out when park staff told them the site was being evacuated.

She said she had heard what sounded like "gunshots" and an air ambulance had circled above.

Pelham added: "There was a big, black tarpaulin over the tiger enclosure."

She praised park staff for their handling of the incident, saying it had been "very, very well organised".

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