It was a story that terrorized the people of rural Kelantan in the 2000s: a harimau Malaya (Malayan tiger) out in the jungles was attacking and killing rubber tappers, plantation workers, and anyone else unlucky enough to get caught in his path.
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Named Scarface by wildlife officials after an attack on a woman left her with a lucky escape, and him with a laceration to his face from her knife, the male tiger lived to the ripe old age of 21 — significantly longer than the usual 16-year life expectancy of the animal in the wild.
Scarface spent his twilight years at the National Wildlife Rescue Center in Sungkai, Perak, where he passed away on Saturday at 3:50pm. Veterinarians have stated that the cause of death is believed to be old age, with a postmortem having been performed the same day as his death.
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The director-general of the Malaysian Department of Wildlife and National Parks, Abdul Kadir Abu Hashim, called Scarface’s death a major loss to the NWRC, where he had become a bit of an icon since arriving back in 2013.
After having been captured in Jeli, Kelantan in 2002, Scarface was sent to the Melaka Zoo in 2002, before finally arriving at the wildlife reserve.
He was known to have attacked five individuals, with only the 65-year-old female victim surviving after she slashed him with her knife and made a run for it. The four others weren’t so lucky.
One rubber tapper was found with a severed head and injuries to his body after Scarface attacked him on a plantation in Sungai Long, Kelantan. Another individual was found in a similar state, having been attacked while also tapping rubber in Kampung Pasir Dusun, Jeli.
A third recorded death occurred in Kuala Belah, Jeli, where a 31-year-old male victim was found dead and mauled at another rubber plantation. Details of the fourth death could not be obtained as of press time.
