Colombo - Four people, including a tour guide, are being held in a Sri Lankan jail on charges of negligence which led to the death of a German tourist who was crushed by a wild elephant in a wildlife park in southern Sri Lanka.
The German tourist, Dr Grit Froehlich, 28, was attacked by the elephant on Sunday at the Bundala Wildlife sanctuary, 243 kilometers south of the capital, and later succumbed to her injuries at a nearby hospital on the same day.
The tour guide, two drivers and an assistant were remanded into custody by Additional Magistrate Fizal Razin until September 29, for allegations of neglecting their duties resulting in the death of the tourist.
"Despite the adverse war situation (in the north of the country) tourists arrive in Sri Lanka with the faith that we would look after them and in this case we feel they have failed in their duty," the magistrate said.
According to evidence presented to the court, the driver of the vehicle had climbed a tree to observe whether elephants were crossing their path and Dr Froehlich had followed the man.
She had noticed an elephant and attempted to photograph the animal.
The elephant then charged and attacked her.
Dr Froehlich's boyfriend, Thomas Lous, 37, a sales promoter in Germany who accompanied the victim to hospital, told the magisterial inquiry that at the hospital the process of treatment was slow and he felt that her life could have been saved if the hospital staff had acted promptly.
Dr Froehlich, from the German town of Chemnitz, was among eight others on a two-week long tour in Sri Lanka.
Police said the body is to be flown back to Germany. - Sapa-DPA