An overseas Filipino worker (OFW) employed as a domestic helper in Kuwait died a few days after being attacked by her employer’s pet lion.
Lourdes Abejuela was doing laundry on the rooftop of the house in which she was employed, when her employer’s pet lion – which was kept in a cage on the rooftop – escaped from its enclosure and attacked the unsuspecting victim.
Friend and fellow OFW, Nieva Edullantes, told reporters that Abejuela suffered from deep bite wounds on her left leg, and was taken to hospital for treatment.
The victim, however, was under orders from her employer not tell doctors that she had been bitten by a lion, as it is against Kuwaiti law to keep wild animals as pets.
The medical staff who attended to Abejuela were told that the bite wounds had been inflicted by a dog, and the patient was discharged shortly after treatment.
“The lion attacked her. She was rushed to a hospital, but then the hospital was not informed that she was bitten by a lion. Her employer requested her not to tell what happened. So when she was in the hospital, she was released immediately,” Edullante said, speaking in Filipino.
According to Edullante, Abejuela experienced headaches some days after having been treated for the wound. This prompted the latter’s employer to once more bring her to hospital, where she died on Wednesday, December 10.
“I cried, it was painful. We left our family in the Philippines and this was what happened? We were hurt. I want justice,” Edullantes said in Filipino.
Abejuela was able to inform her family about the incident via a Facebook post dated December 6.
The case is still under further investigation.