Oak Bay Police say a young girl’s story and photograph of a cougar lying in grass in a residential part of the city last week was false.
The 13-year-old girl said she snapped a picture of the big cat on Central Avenue near Monterey Avenue Friday and sent it to Conservation Officers, who confirmed it was a photo of a cougar.
That sparked an hours-long search by police and Conservation Officers, but no cougar was found in the neighbourhood.
Police then received information over the weekend that helped them determine the story was made up. The photo circulating of the supposed Oak Bay cougar was one that had been shot and killed in Edmonton last year.
The girl cropped the photo and saved it to her cell phone before sending it in, police said.
Police said she is “very remorseful” for making the story up, and told her the false report could be construed as a criminal offense of public mischief.
No charges are being laid and police said they just want to get the word out that the reported cougar sighting was false.
