Police on trail of 'puma' cat

SIGHTINGS of a "puma-sized" cat in a country park led to a police search being launched today.

Officers said a number of members of the public had reported seeing the black cat in and around the park in Brentwood, Essex.

A spokeswoman said there had also been a report of a deer being killed.

"We are conducting various area searches," said the spokeswoman. "We would ask anyone who has lost a large cat to get in touch and we will be making the usual inquiries with wildlife parks and so on."