Report from Mark Fraser
Big Cat seen near Hamilton
14 th February 1995
A phone call from a witness who did not leave his name, he was even reluctant to give the location of his sighting, which he says took place five years ago near Hamilton. The chap hunts and assures me he has a firearms licence.
It was while out driving late at night. A large feline animal ran out in front of him, he had to brake sharply to avoid hitting it. He said it cleared the road in two bounds, and estimates the road to be 15-20 feet wide. He describes it as being sandy coloured, with a very long tail, and is adamant that it was a puma. The animal disappeared into waste ground by the side of the road. The sighting cannot have lasted for more than five seconds. The witness was quite shaken at what he saw, and worried as the sighting took place adjacent to a primary school. He contacted the police, the officer he saw was sympathetic to his story, believed him, but said there was not a lot he could do. The police officer also told the witness that they are called out to several incidents of this sort and have witnessed sheep kills that cannot be put down to anything else other than big cat kills. He also went on to say that there had been a sighting two nights previous near Blantyre of a similar type animal.
The witness then tells me he wish he had kept quiet about his experience, as the police released the details to the press along with his name and home address. After that the man suffered ridicule for a long time afterwards from friends, neighbours and work colleagues. So I can understand his reluctance to give me his personal details.
14 th February 1995
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