Police call off Essex 'lion' search
Essex police have called off a search for a lion reportedly on the loose.
Officers have spent almost 24 hours combing the countryside around Clacton-on-Sea after a group of residents claimed to have seen the animal near Earls Hall Drive in St Osyth.
But after search teams found no evidence of the big cat, the force this afternoon decided to stop looking.
Hunt for 'lion' in Essex called off by police
A search for a lion in Essex has been called off, with police believing the rogue animal was most likely to be a "large domestic cat".
Armed police respond to 'lion' sighting in Essex village
Police are responding to reports that a lion was seen in a field near the Essex village of St Osyth. Firearms officers have been deployed.