A white tiger attacked and killed a 20-year-old man who apparently slipped and fell into its enclosure at the Delhi zoo on Tuesday.

Witnesses claim the man, identified as Maksood, slipped and fell 18 feet into a dry moat in the tiger enclosure. Moments later, the fully-grown tiger could be seen mauling him.

It is not clear how Maksood fell; some say he was sitting on the enclosure, others say the barricade was too low and he fell in. An image taken by witnesses shows him cowering before the giant animal, his hands folded.

Authorities eventually frightened the tiger into a small cage inside the enclosure. The body remained at the spot two hours after the attack, said AP.

A witness said he raced to the tiger enclosure after hearing screams, to see the man locked in the tiger's jaws, 'writhing badly in pain'..