Updated Wednesday, April 29, 12:36 p.m.
The wily coyote that ran amok through Middle Village Monday morning was safely caught Tuesday night, police announced.
The 104th Precinct posted a photo on its Twitter account at about 8:40 p.m. of the wild animal locked inside of a crate. The critter—which New York City Animal Care and Control (AC&C) later identified as a 4-year-old female—was caught in the area of Caldwell Avenue and 77th Place.
“He [sic] might have gotten away once but not today,” Capt. Mark Wachter, 104th Precinct commanding officer, said in the tweet Tuesday night.
Neighbors and police discovered the coyote sleeping in the front yard of a home on 71st Street across from Juniper Valley Park at about 10:30 a.m. Monday. When first responders moved in to tranquilize and trap the beast, the coyote darted off into the park and surrounding streets.
Police lost track of the coyote, which had been last seen Monday afternoon in the area of Juniper Boulevard South and 80th Street.
Officers and animal care experts were called to the 77th Place home at about 7:15 p.m. Tuesday night after a resident spotted the coyote in her backyard. The animal was successfully tranquilized, trapped and transferred into the custody of New York City Animal Care and Control for evaluation; the AC&C indicated the coyote has since been fitted with a tracking microchip.
Once deemed healthy, the coyote is expected to be released into the wild at a location far from the city.
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