5 lions rescued from the war in Ukraine settle into a new life in England

SMARDEN, England (AP) — One malnourished lioness had spent her life confined to an apartment. Another was so shell-shocked she could barely walk.

They are among five traumatized lions rescued from the war zone in Ukraine who are settling into a new home in England after an international effort to bring them to safety.

Male African lion Rori and lionesses Amani, Lira and Vanda arrived this month at the Big Cat Sanctuary after a 12-hour journey by road and ferry from temporary homes at zoos and animal shelters in Belgium. They join lioness Yuna, who arrived in August, at the sanctuary’s new Lion Rescue Center, which officially opens on Tuesday.

All five were found near the front line in Ukraine’s war against Russian invasion, neglected and abandoned by their owners.

“All of these five lions were originally from the illegal pet trade and wildlife trade,” said Cameron Whitnall, managing director of the Big Cat Sanctuary near Ashford, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) southeast of London. “None of them came from zoos.”

Yuna was kept in a small brick cell and was shellshocked after missile debris fell near her enclosure. Rori was mistreated in a private menagerie, while sanctuary staff believe siblings Amani and Lira were bred to have their photos taken with tourists as cubs.

Vanda, kept inside an apartment, was malnourished and infested with parasites.

Whitnall says in her new home Vanda, like the others, can “become the lion she deserves to be.”

The lions were saved by the Wild Animals Rescue Center run by Natalia Popova, a Ukrainian woman who has saved hundreds of abandoned pets and zoo animals since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. Lions, tigers, leopards, wolves, deer, monkeys and more have passed through her shelter, a converted horse stables near Kyiv.

Hundreds have been sent abroad for treatment and recovery. Whitnall was determined to bring the five lions to Britain, even though the sanctuary had nowhere to put them. A fundraising campaign launched in May 2024 raised more than 500,000 pounds ($650,000) to cover the costs of transportation, veterinary care and building a new home for the cats.

Staff say they are adapting well to their enclosures, which have been designed around each lion’s individual needs. Yuna and Rori, who have coordination issues, got gently landscaped environments where they can’t fall from a height, while sisters Amani and Lira have trees to climb. Vanda, the most playful and confident of the lions, has an enclosure that includes a water feature.

“I’m sure it’s a bit of a journey. We've got more to do, but they are taking everything so incredibly well,” said curator Briony Smith, who looks after the animals. “You can already tell that there is improvement in their care and their welfare and the way that they feel about that.”

Smith and Whitnall are still getting to know their four newest charges. They have already formed a strong bond with Yuna, who had never been on grass until she was rescued.

“She could barely walk,” Whitnall said. “She was suffering from shellshock and concussion. She was so severely bad that they were actually going to euthanize her. But we managed to step in and get her out of the war zone, and she’s just come on leaps and bounds since being here at the sanctuary.

“We’re just so happy with her progress,” said Whitnall, who enjoys feeding Yuna her favorite snack of raw chicken legs. “She’s a beautiful lioness now.”

Video journalist Tom Rayner contributed to this story.

After being rescued from Ukraine, lion Vanda settles into her new forever home at The Big Cat Sanctuary near Ashford in Kent, England, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Rori a lion rescued from Ukraine settles into his new forever home at The Big Cat Sanctuary, near Ashford in Kent, England, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Rori a lion rescued from Ukraine settles into his new forever home at The Big Cat Sanctuary, near Ashford in Kent, England, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Rori a lion rescued from Ukraine settles into his new forever home at The Big Cat Sanctuary, near Ashford in Kent, England, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Rori a lion rescued from Ukraine settles into his new forever home at The Big Cat Sanctuary, near Ashford in Kent, England, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Rori a lion rescued from Ukraine settles into his new forever home at The Big Cat Sanctuary, near Ashford in Kent, England, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Cameron Whitnall watches Vanda a lion rescued from Ukraine, as she settles into her new forever home at The Big Cat Sanctuary, near Ashford in Kent, England, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Yuna, a lion rescued from Ukraine growls at a camera as she settles into her new forever home at The Big Cat Sanctuary, near Ashford in Kent, England, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Cameron Whitnall feeds Yuna after lions are rescued from Ukraine and settle into their new forever home at The Big Cat Sanctuary, near Ashford in Kent, England, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Cameron Whitnall feeds Yuna after lions are rescued from Ukraine and settle into their new forever home at The Big Cat Sanctuary, near Ashford in Kent, England, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Cameron Whitnall lion expert is interviewed at The Big Cat Sanctuary after lions are rescued from Ukraine and settle into their new forever home, near Ashford in Kent, England, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

After being rescued from Ukraine, lion Lira settles into her new forever home at The Big Cat Sanctuary near Ashford in Kent, England, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

After being rescued from Ukraine, lion sisters Amani and Lira settle into their new forever home at The Big Cat Sanctuary near Ashford in Kent, England, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

After being rescued from Ukraine, lion sisters Amani and Lira settle into their new forever home at The Big Cat Sanctuary near Ashford in Kent, England, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

After being rescued from Ukraine, lion sisters Amani and Lira settle into their new forever home at The Big Cat Sanctuary near Ashford in Kent, England, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

After being rescued from Ukraine, lion sisters Amani and Lira settle into their new forever home at The Big Cat Sanctuary near Ashford in Kent, England, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

DECATUR, Ala. (AP) — An Alabama judge heard conflicting testimony on Tuesday about newly released body camera video that captured the moments before a police officer fatally shot an armed Black man outside of his home, in a case that highlights the complex legal questions that arise after police shootings in states with “stand your ground” laws and widespread gun ownership.

Mac Marquette, 25, is charged with murder for fatally shooting Steve Perkins just before 2 a.m. on September 29, 2023, while accompanying a tow-truck driver to repossess Perkins’ truck at his home in Decatur, Alabama.

The body camera video shown in court appears to confirm officers' testimony that Perkins pointed a gun at Marquette. But the law enforcement expert who investigated the shooting says that Marquette also had the opportunity to potentially avoid a violent confrontation altogether.

Circuit court judge Charles Elliot heard arguments on Tuesday about whether Marquette should be shielded from prosecution by Alabama’s “stand your ground” law, which grants immunity from prosecution to any individual who uses deadly force as long as they are in a place they have a right to be and reasonably believe they are in danger.

Stand your ground laws have proliferated nationally after the fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin in 2012, sparking debate about race, gun laws and self-defense. Upward of 30 states have some form of the law, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Marquette was one of three officers who was dispatched to help Caleb Combs after he called the police to report Perkins for pointing a gun at his chest when Combs tried to repossess Perkins' truck. Combs, who was authorized by Perkins' creditor to repossess the truck, said he wanted to retry the seizure but said he “would not go back alone.”

All three officers were out of sight from Perkins’ front door when Combs returned to Perkins' home with his tow-truck, according to body camera video. Marquette and another officer, Joey Williams, stood at the side of the house.

Attorneys relied on a beam visible in the body camera video that was cast by a tactical light attached to Perkins’ handgun to identify where his weapon was pointed when he emerged from his house for the second time. When Combs tried again to repossess Perkins’ pickup truck, the beam appeared to indicate that Perkins pointed his gun towards Combs.

Videos from both two of the officers' body cameras then show Marquette rounding the corner to confront Perkins. In a matter of seconds, Perkins appears to point the gun at Marquette, who shouted “Police, get on the ground" and almost instantly fired approximately 17 bullets, killing Perkins.

Just before Marquette opened fire, body camera video appears to show the light from Perkins' gun pointing upwards against his house, away from Marquette. Prosecutors said that indicated that Perkins tried to raise his arms in surrender before he was killed.

Judge Elliot didn't review Marquette's body camera video.

Perkins' didn't fire any bullets but his gun was found with a “depressed trigger,” according to the state law enforcement agent who investigated the shooting. The agent, Jamie King, said it is not clear when the trigger was pulled, and that the chamber was empty.

“That was the most scared I’ve ever been,” Marquette said in an interview he gave investigators immediately after the shooting, according to an audio recording played in court.

King said that the officers had “reasonable belief that Perkins was going to use deadly force" and had to make a quick decision. But he also questioned why the officers were there in the first place, and said there were other police tactics that could have avoided the situation altogether.

Creditors don’t need a judge to authorize the repossession a vehicle if a person fails to make loan payments. But Alabama law requires a court order if there is a “breach of the peace” in the initial attempt to seize the vehicle, and law enforcement is prohibited from assisting the repossession without a judge’s authorization.

Officer Christopher Mukkadam and Williams both testified that they weren’t assisting with the repossession, which would violate Alabama law, but were instead providing a “civil escort” that was routinely done to “keep the peace.”

All witnesses agreed that there was a breach of peace when Combs initially tried to seize Perkins’ truck.

King said that officers “exceeded the scope" of their responsibilities because they didn't have a court order authorizing the vehicle seizure.

“In order to keep the peace you need officer presence, and officer presence means an officer had to be visible,” King said.

The hearing comes on the heels of two years of intense conflict and protest about Perkins' death in the northern Alabama city of approximately 60,000 people.

Perkins’ wife and mother both left while the body camera video of the shooting played. Over 100 people filled the courtroom to capacity on Tuesday. Some wearing shirts that read “back the blue” sat in the benches behind Marquette. Across the aisle, others wore shirts that read “#IAmStevePerkins” and sat behind Perkins’ family.

Elliot will hear arguments from both sides on Wednesday. If he denies the former officer immunity, Marquette's trial will begin on April 7.

This photo taken in Decatur, Ala., Tuesday, March 25, 2025, shows the Alabama courthouse for a case of former Decatur police officer Mac Marquette's fatally shooting Steve Perkins in 2023. (AP Photo/Safiyah Riddle)