(Original headline: Beast on the run in Salisbury)
Police in Salisbury have been left baffled by a series of sightings of a mysterious creature that is roaming the city's streets.
The beast is described as a cross between a kangaroo, a cat and a monkey.
The first report of a sighting in Salisbury came from 23-year-old Nicki Lomas who said she had seen an unusual animal cross her path just. She described what she saw as a "cat-like" animal, larger than a dog with a long yellow and black tail with a white tip.
Wiltshire Police were unable to dismiss the report after two of their own officers had also seen a bizarre creature the previous night around a mile away.
The pair were on patrol driving along Castle Road in Salisbury in the early hours when a creature dashed across their path. They described it as skinny, about 2ft high, with a long ringed tail and "the gait of a monkey".
Now the mystery has deepened after retired airline pilot Raymond Clark, 79, reported spotting a large dark grey "racoon-like" animal with a sloping back like that of a kangaroo feeding and a long ringed tail.
Mr Clark believes the animal may have been a coatimundi - a relative of the racoon originating from the forests of Mexico and Central America which eats insects, fruit, small mammals, and eggs.
A spokesman for Wiltshire Police said: "If you put the three sightings on a map they are more or less in a straight line about a mile apart."
He added that officers did not believe the animal, likely to be an unusual pet on the run, was dangerous adding that there had not been any reports of dogs or other domestic animals being mauled in the area.
"We haven't really got the resources to stake out and look for something like that," he said.
"There could be other members of the public out there who have seen it and thought nobody will believe me and didn't report it."
Police are now appealing for anyone who may have photographed the animal to come forward - although an identity parade is not thought to be on the cards.
