Return of the Crystal Palace Puma

by Jason Clarke

A supposed big cat stalking the Crystal Palace area of South London has been spotted again earlier this month.

Martial arts expert Roger Fleming told the Croydon Guardian that he fled from the beast like a big girl when he spotted it late at night on the 9th December.

“I looked down the hill and saw something moving in the shadows about 20-30 metres away. I thought it must be a fox, but then it walked under a street light.” The tough guy explained.

“It had the head and shoulders of a cheetah, and it was brown. It locked on to me, and I just started running for my life. It chased me for about 30 seconds.”

Mr Fleming said he was so scared that he couldn’t perform his duties properly the next day at his job as a building manager for Chrysalis Music.

“I’ve done martial arts for 20 years, and I’ve never felt so weak and useless in my life. I thought, ‘this could be it’.” He said.

Mr Fleming had been out late at night in a secluded woodland between College Road and Sydenham Hill jogging with his dog, that is when he spotted what is known as the Sydenham Beast.

The Sydenham Beast first came to light in March 2005 when a man reported being attacked by a large black cat. In August this year journalist Helen Barrett reported how she and her family were forced to run from the creature when it approached them from bushes.

Most big cat experts say that these animals are usually harmless, but in this case it might be that the Sydenham Beast is so accustomed to humans it doesn’t fear them, and joggers may be on the menu if there’s a harsh winter and a hungry panther prowling South London.

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Return of the Crystal Palace Puma

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