For a moment, there was authentic leopard print on display at an Indian mall.
The big cat skulked through the Korum Mall basement before opening hours early morning Wednesday in Thane, outside Mumbai, the Hindustan Times and other media reported.
Surveillance video showed the leopard pacing through the empty mall before shuffling through the parking lot about 5:30am, the paper said.
Its movement toward a residential area triggered a capture mission, and forest officials trapped and tranquilised the animal in the basement of a nearby hotel.
Officials speculated that the leopard absconded from Sanjay Gandhi National Park, a serene nature preserve dotted with lakes and basalt cave complexes in the heart of Mumbai's gargantuan sprawl. The mall is less than 4km from the eastern edge of the park, which notes a high density of leopards.