When a cheetah went on the run

HAMERTON Zoo was at the centre of a scare nine years ago when a cheetah escaped.

The three-year-old animal, called Akea, ended up in the garden of a neighbouring home and was discovered by a nine-year-old boy playing on his bicycle.

Akea had scaled an 8ft fence surrounding his outdoor enclosure after a solar-powered electric fencing unit broke down.

It was the first time a non-domesticated animal had escaped since the zoo was opened in 1990.

Keepers said Akea had posed no danger to the public because he was tame after being hand-reared.

One added: ‘When I go in to see him he sits on me and we have cuddles. He’s just like a big dog.’