Decapitated deer found near where a ‘LION’ was spotted in Cornwall
Locals following the trail of big cat that left behind 'paw' prints yesterday
A DECAPITATED deer has been found near where a 'lion' was spotted yesterday - fuelling fears one may be on the loose.
Cops confirmed earlier today that they had investigated a lioness on the prowl in the Cornish countryside after one was seen crossing a road by a trucker - and it had even left PAW prints.
The probe was dropped after officers found no live trace of a big cat in the area.
But fears of the deadly animal being out in the wild have been spiked for a second time after another lorry driver came forward to say he had now discovered a headless deer less than a mile away.
Brian Goldsworthy revealed the partial body of the dead deer was found in a quarry, near St Austell, Cornwall, on Tuesday morning.
He said: "I come in every morning to open up the quarry between 5.15am and 5.30am.
"Yesterday morning we found the body of a headless baby deer in the quarry.
"It is a serious matter. I know a few people are taking it quite lightly. But it is a serious matter - when you start finding headless animals then things get a little bit serious.
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"We've had the big cat up in Devon going around eating baby lambs. You never know what's going to come around the corner that hour of the morning.
"I'm not worried - not like that - but you never know what you're going to find when you come into work in the mornings."
The sighting came on the same day that police revealed a fellow lorry driver had contacted Imerys Minerals to say they had seen a big cat with black markings on its face, a thorny colour, and a dark tail.
When the police arrived at the clay pit on they found mysterious white paw prints where the creature had crossed the road.
A spokesman for Devon and Cornwall Police said: ''It was described as a female lion walking in front of a lorry. Officers went and spoke to the driver who had seen it.
"There were marks where the animal crossed. There have been reports of a similar nature over the years. "There was no sighting of the animal by officers.
"It is not thought to be a danger to members of the public or workers."
Both sightings came just days after Dartmoor Zoo's missing wild cat Flaviu was finally caught after three weeks on the run at the weekend.
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