Korean Wolf Escapes Theme Park for Days, Finally Captured

The Daejeon city government in South Korea announced on the 17th that the wolf "Legu," which escaped from a theme park on the 8th, has been safely captured.

Search and rescue teams spotted the wolf near the Daejeon South Ring Expressway in Anyoung-dong, Jung-gu, Daejeon city, at around 11:45 p.m. on the 16th. After about 30 minutes of search operations, they successfully captured it at 12:44 a.m. on the 17th with the help of veterinarians and by using a tranquilizer.

The staff of the O-World zoo at the Daejeon theme park in central South Korea discovered a gap in one of the enclosures during a routine inspection on the 8th. After reviewing surveillance footage, they found that Legu, a male wolf born in 2024 and weighing around 30 kilograms, had used his animal instincts to dig a hole under the fence and successfully escape.

The incident even caught the attention of South Korean President Lee Jae-myung. He posted on social platform X to inquire and urged the authorities to ensure the rescue operation was completed safely.

Large numbers of police, firefighters, and experts rushed to the scene to search for Legu, but he was agile and could not be captured for quite some time.

On major social media platforms, news of Legu’s escape sparked heated discussion. Many netizens cheered him on, hoping he could live a free life: “He managed to dig a tunnel to escape, he’s so smart!” and “This is the wolf version of 'The Shawshank Redemption’.”