German police called off a two-day search for a suspected lioness after hundreds of police officers, assisted by helicopters and drones, found no trace of the animal in the southwestern outskirts of Berlin.
(Bloomberg) — German police called off a two-day search for a suspected lioness after hundreds of police officers, assisted by helicopters and drones, found no trace of the animal in the southwestern outskirts of Berlin.
“There’s no immediate danger situation,” said the mayor of suburb Kleinmachnow, Michael Gruber, at a press conference on Friday. Experts have analyzed images of the animal and come to the conclusion that it’s in fact a wild boar, Gruber said. “Everyone agrees that this is not a lioness.”
The police will end the search and return to its regular activities in the afternoon, a police officer standing next to Gruber confirmed.
Several sightings of a big animal which was believed to a lioness had alarmed local authorities. Police called on residents of the city’s Zehlendorf district and surrounding areas to stay inside and avoid nearby forests.
Police began the search Thursday morning after two people spotted a large animal the night before in the suburb of Kleinmachnow in Brandenburg. An unverified video circulated on Twitter showing a large animal which police at the time said resembled a lioness, adding that it considered the situation “credible”.
(Updates with latest developments throughout)
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