A lion that escaped from a local circus near Rome was captured after roaming the streets of the town of Ladispoli for several hours.
The mayor of the city of 40,000, Alessandro Grando, had called on his citizens to stay at home while police and circus staff tried to catch the cat.
Videos published by Italian media, the authenticity of which AFP could not confirm, show an adult lion running through deserted streets in the middle of the night.
At 10:30 p.m. (4:30 p.m. Eastern Time), more than five hours after his first message urging caution, Mr. Grando assured on his Facebook page that the lion had been “calmed and captured.”
“He is now being cared for by the circus staff,” he added, thanking the emergency services and volunteers who helped during “these hours of worry.”
“I hope this episode can raise awareness and that we can finally put an end to the exploitation of animals in circuses,” he wrote.
Anticipating possible complaints, Mr. Grando clarified that he had not approved the presence of a circus with lions in the city, but that he did not have the power to prevent it.