The search for a free-roaming big cat in Berlin and Brandenburg continues this Friday. As the police in Berlin announced, around 100 emergency services are currently busy with the search. During the night, there were therefore no new findings about the whereabouts. According to a spokeswoman in Berlin, the search is still focused on the southern districts. How exactly the search measures look like during the day is not yet known. The current situation is to be discussed in the early morning.
According to the mayor of Kleinmachnow, Michael Grubert, professional animal trackers should then also be used. “It can’t go on like this for days,” said Grubert, referring to the large-scale police operation.
On the night of Friday, the police in Brandenburg and Berlin continued to search. In the south of the capital, around 220 police officers are deployed in the area where there were possible sightings, a spokeswoman for the Berlin police said on Thursday evening. Veterinarians and the city hunter are involved in the search. Night vision goggles and a night vision drone should be used. The operation focused on the Zehlendorf area, where the animal may have been seen.
At the same time, the police in Brandenburg continued their search at night. The police said there were repeated reports from citizens to the police and the responsible regulatory office. These would be systematically checked. “So far, none of the clues have led to the identification of the wild animal we are looking for.”
In daylight, drones should then be used again for the search, it said.
The warning reached the population south of Berlin on Thursday night: A wild cat is said to have been sighted in Kleinmachnow in Brandenburg. A cell phone video from a witness, just a few seconds long, shows an animal sneaking around between bushes and trees there. The investigating authorities consider the video to be genuine. Police officers also saw the big cat “secured” during the night, said a spokeswoman for the authorities.
There were other possible sightings in the afternoon and evening in the Berlin city area, near the southern border with Brandenburg. The Berlin police therefore concentrated their search on the area in Zehlendorf around the long Königsweg. Potsdam also called on residents to be vigilant: “Open your eyes! Potsdam is not far away,” the city announced on Twitter.
At first, however, there was no trace: neither blood, nor faeces, nor paw prints indicated the presence of the animal in the region. From the point of view of the veterinarian Achim Gruber from the Free University of Berlin, doubts remain as to whether it is really a lioness. “I think it’s possible that it’s a lioness, but I’m not convinced,” said Gruber in the RBB special. He bet on the hunting dogs that were looking for the animal. If they don’t find any traces, this is “a strong piece of the puzzle” against the hypothesis that you are dealing with a lioness.
And if it really is a lioness, then the question remains: where does she come from? At least not from the zoos, animal parks and circuses in this region, as the police found out during the night. Nobody missed a big cat there. According to Mayor Grubert, private owners are not known in Kleinmachnow.
Note: Due to the dynamic situation, this article is constantly updated.
