HIDE OUT Tiger pelt goes missing

Posted on 06/21/2016 | About Victoria, British Columbia

A Bengal tiger pelt that had been hanging above the fireplace of the Bengal Lounge at the Fairmont Empress in Victoria, BC, for decades was stolen last week. Renovations are currently underway at the hotel and Victoria police are looking at security footage to see if they can identify a culprit amid a flurry of workers coming in and out.

The Bengal Lounge has been closed permanently since last month.
“The Fairmont Empress is extremely disheartened to see this significant piece of our hotel history disappear,” said the hotel in a statement. “Hung above the fireplace in the Bengal room, the Bengal tiger pelt was part of the Indian theme adopted by the restaurant during Operation Teacup in 1970. The iconic pelt was an important piece of history for guests, and is an integral part of the décor for the newly reinvented and restored Bengal social space.”
The original pelt was a gift from the King of Siam when he visited the hotel in the late 1940s. This one was purchased after a government sanctioned hunt in India in the nineties.
Hotel manager Indu Brar has dubbed the case “Operation Tiger.” She is hoping the incident is a prank and that the skin will be returned intact.
That was the case in 1980 when the Bengal pelt went missing.
It was found in a poultry box near a freight elevator inside the back door of the Times Colonist newspaper office. It had a note attached that read, ‘Please return to the Bengal Room at the Empress Hotel. It was borrowed. Thank you, Barney and Fred.’