Tense scene on I-35

Authorities seized a tiger and a bobcat Tuesday from a two-story brick home in a southeastern Bexar County neighborhood.

Investigators with the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office and San Antonio Animal Care Services found the wild cats inside the residence in the 3100 block of Shane Road.

The 5-year-old bobcat and 13-week-old tiger were taken to the San Antonio Zoo, where they will be housed temporarily before moving to a wildlife sanctuary.

“People need to use their brain and realize not only is it dangerous, not only is it extremely irresponsible, it’s illegal” to keep wild animals, Sheriff Javier Salazar said.

Jeremy Martinez, 25, was arrested at the home.

Martinez was charged with violating a county ordinance on keeping exotic animals and possession of marijuana. He also had an outstanding warrant for failure to identify.

The tiger’s owners are believed to be connected to the owners of the tiger found on Feb. 13 outside a southwestern Bexar County home.

Manuel Flores, an officer with ACS, warned that cute tiger cubs grow up quickly.

“That can be a real big problem, especially if they get loose into the community,” Flores said.

The discoveries — and the thought of what would have happened if the exotic animals had gotten loose — were rather alarming for Nichols Wesley, 80, who lives across the street with his family.

“Our cats and dogs come in and out,” Wesley said. “So it’d probably cost them their lives.”

Kin Man Hui / Staff photographer A man kept police at bay for hours Tuesday on an overpass of Interstate 35 near Zarazamora, threatening to take his life. The incident forced both the northbound and southbound lanes to be shut down in the area, and traffic was diverted for about four hours as police negotiated with him. The situation ended after police were able to lure the man away from the ledge and subdue him. The man still appeared agitated and was yelling until they placed him into a waiting ambulance.