Zoo keeper of Knut the polar bear dead
Thomas Doerflein, the zoo keeper in charge of rearing Berlin zoo's superstar polar bear Knut, has died, police said on Monday.
There were no signs of any foul play and so far no indications the 44-year-old committed suicide although investigations were continuing, a police spokeswoman said.
Daily newspaper Berliner Zeitung said in an article to be published Tuesday that Doerflein was found dead in his flat in the Wilmersdorf area of Berlin.
Knut shot to fame as a cub in 2007, drawing huge crowds and even appearing on the cover of glossy US magazine Vanity Fair. Now an adult, Knut is now showing disturbed behaviour, animal welfare groups say.