A fully grown male lion terrified residents in a quiet Italian town after it escaped from a circus and prowled the streets for hours after dark.
The fearsome animal, called Kimba, spent around six hours stalking the streets of Ladispoli, a town south of Rome, before it was tranquilised and recaptured on Saturday evening.
Officials were investigating how the animal escaped, amid reports on Sunday that there had been an act of “sabotage” and that the animal’s cage had been opened deliberately, perhaps by animal welfare activists.
A police helicopter tracked Kimba using infrared cameras while locals filmed the predator on their phones from their homes and vehicles.
Footage taken by one woman shows Kimba nonchalantly making its way down an empty street and at one point appearing to glance in her direction.
Be on maximum alert
“Mamma mia,” the woman says.
Another resident filmed the lion as it strode past their car.
Police, firefighters, vets and council officials took part in the hunt for the lion. A stretch of nearby highway, the Via Aurelia, was closed as a precautionary measure.
“Important notice!” the mayor of the town, Alessandro Grando, posted on his Facebook account. “A lion has escaped from a circus in Viale Mediterraneo. Please be on maximum alert and avoid moving around the town.”
