Savannah pet cat mistaken for a leopard (screenshot of video captured by US media)

The British London Police Department received a call on the 25th, the other party said that they saw a “leopard” in the street. Subsequently, the police sent a special police team as well as two helicopters to look for, but ultimately this “beast” was confirmed only a resident’s pet cat.

According to the New York Post, a woman who called the police said she was sitting in the garden with her daughter when a “leopard” suddenly popped out of the bushes next to her, and she immediately called the police along with others present. “It was a very dramatic scene,” the woman said, “we were very scared and there were two police helicopters overhead watching the ground, and in this case they had to think it was a dangerous beast.” Another resident also said, “The reaction of people at the scene was one of chaos.”

The investigation eventually revealed that the “beast” was just a hybrid pet Savannah cat that had escaped from a neighbor’s garden. This cat is a cross between an African wildcat and a domestic cat, larger than the average cat, and has a strong hunting instinct. But a website dedicated to this pet says the cat has the general energy and loyalty of a dog, but also the general independence and awareness of a domestic cat, “there is no better pet than it.”

Police also confirmed that a heavily armed SWAT team was dispatched to the scene, but abandoned the operation after ensuring that the “beast” did not pose a risk to the lives of local residents. After learning that the “beast” was just a pet cat that looked like a leopard, the police also withdrew their investigation.