Two men breached the Central Zoo's security on Tuesday evening and attempted to steal an endangered red panda.

According to the zoo administration, two suspected smugglers, both masked, entered the zoo from the back side at around 7 pm, evading the security cameras.

“They tried to steal the red panda on display at the zoo,” said Ganesh Koirala, spokesperson at the Central Zoo. “But they fled away when zoo workers and security personnel noticed them and ran towards them.”

The zoo administration lodged a case at the Police Range, Lalitpur, following the incident.

“We have started an investigation immediately learning about the incident,” said Shyam Krishna Adhikari, Senior Superintendent of Police. “We have opened the record book of red panda smugglers. They will be apprehended soon.”

According to the police, the suspects tried to stuff the endangered species into a bag and flee, but could not, as the animal coiled up. Red pandas are smuggled for their fur and skin.

The zoo administration placed two rescued red pandas—a male and a female—in 2013. Only the female red panda remains following the male's death around a year ago.

Red Panda, one of the world’s most elusive mammals, is listed as Endangered in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species and included in Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

The National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 2029 BS (1973) has categorised the red panda as a protected species in Nepal. Despite this, intensified human activities, such as livestock grazing, illegal trade, poaching, and habitat loss and degradation, threaten their long-term survival.

The Red Panda Conservation Action Plan for Nepal (2019-2023) has been prepared with an aim to protect and manage red panda populations through a holistic approach to conservation, including research, monitoring, awareness building,

habitat improvement and threat management.