Nukgu, the wolf that escaped from the Daejeon O-World safari and whose whereabouts were unknown for a time, was captured alive after 9 days.
According to Daejeon City on the 17th, Nukgu was captured at about 12:44 a.m. near the Anyoung interchange (IC) on the Daejeon Southern Ring Expressway in Anyoung-dong, Jung District, Daejeon. Nukgu was moved back to O-World, where it had previously stayed.
Search authorities said they had received a report at about 5:30 p.m. the previous day that a wolf had been seen near Root Park in Chimsan-dong, Jung District, Daejeon, and had been searching the area. At about 9:54 p.m., they spotted an animal nearby believed to be Nukgu, but it was confirmed to be a badger, and they launched a follow-up search.
Then, at about 11:45 p.m., the search team spotted the real Nukgu near the Anyoung IC and conducted a capture operation over about 30 minutes starting at about 12:15 a.m.
The search team first prepared a tranquilizer gun, then confirmed Nukgu's location and approached. It was reported that, with a veterinarian present, they fired the tranquilizer gun and succeeded in capturing Nukgu alive.
A veterinarian confirmed that Nukgu is currently under anesthesia and that body temperature and pulse are all normal. A member of the search team said, "Nukgu has been safely moved to O-World," adding, "So far there are no abnormalities in its health, and we are monitoring its condition until the anesthesia wears off."
On the morning of the 8th, Nukgu dug under the O-World safari's barbed-wire fence and escaped. It was spotted several times afterward, but capture attempts failed because it reacted quickly even to small signs. It was captured alive on this day, 9 days later.