Authorities are still trying to locate a tiger that was purportedly being kept as a pet and got loose in a Houston neighborhood on Sunday night. His alleged caretaker, who claims he is not its owner, was taken in to custody and is facing charges related to the incident.
Footage of the cat wandering the streets of the suburban area terrorized neighbors and made headlines in the past 24 hours. As previously reported by Fox News, video filmed from a nearby house shows the large cat approaching an armed off-duty sheriff’s deputy. The deputy pointed his gun at the tiger but did not shoot it.
A man was then seen coming outside to collect the cat. He appeared to lead the tiger into an SUV, which he drove away before authorities could arrive.
That man, identified as 26-year-old Victor Hugo Cuevas, was later taken into custody at his parents’ home in Richmond and reportedly charged with evading arrest. In 2017, Cuevas had been charged with murder related to a fatal shooting and was out on bond at the time of the tiger incident.
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Cuevas’ lawyer said he may not be the owner of the tiger, AP News reports.
“People are making a lot of assumptions in this particular case. Maybe he might be the hero out there who caught the tiger that was in the neighborhood,” Michael W. Elliot told AP.
The tiger has yet to be located, USA Today reported.
An off-duty sheriff’s deputy was filmed pointing a gun at the animal to protect the neighborhood. (José Antonio Ramos)
A spokesperson for the Houston Zoo confirmed to Fox News that it has not been asked to help locate the tiger by the authorities.
The spokesperson provided the following statement: “The Houston Zoo is aware of the tiger found in a Houston neighborhood on Sunday, May 9. The owner of the tiger is not affiliated with the Houston Zoo in any way. Tigers are dangerous animals and are never appropriate pets.
“They can weigh up to 600 pounds and can prey upon 1,000-pound animals in the wild. They require specialized diet and professional care, which the Houston Zoo provides to our Malayan tiger, Berani, and all the animals in our facility. The Houston Zoo strongly opposes the breeding and commercial trade in tigers for private ownership, based on concerns about animal welfare and public safety.”
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The statement continues, “Fewer than 3,500 tigers of all tiger subspecies remain in the wild today, according to the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Tiger Conservation Campaign. Malayan tigers surviving on the Malay Peninsula are critically endangered with an estimated population of 300 remaining in the wild.”
Fox News’ Louis Casiano contributed to this report.
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