This archive report was first published on 11 May 2021.
Houston Man Flees with Bengal Tiger, Faces Evading Arrest Charges ¶
On Mother's Day, a Bengal tiger was spotted roaming through a residential neighborhood in Houston, Texas. The tiger, classified as an endangered species, was seen on the lawn of a home on Ivy Wall Drive in West Houston, before getting up and roaming into the street.
As onlookers took videos of the tiger from a distance, an off-duty sheriff's deputy who lives in the neighborhood drew a handgun. A man who authorities said was the tiger's owner emerged from the residence to corral the tiger, kissing it as he led it away.
However, the man, identified as Victor Hugo Cuevas, 26, was not the tiger's owner, according to his lawyer. Cuevas had previously been charged with murder in Fort Bend County, Texas, and had been released on bond.
When police arrived, Cuevas was in a Jeep Cherokee with the tiger, but he got away after a brief pursuit. The Houston Police Department announced on Monday evening that they would charge Cuevas with evading arrest.
Commander Ronald Borza of the Houston Police Department warned that situations like the one that happened on Sunday could have deadly consequences for both people and exotic animals. 'You never know when that animal is going to turn on you,' Borza said.
According to an arrest warrant, Cuevas had been charged with murder in a July 2017 fatal shooting of a man in the parking lot of a sushi restaurant in Richmond, Texas. He was released on $125,000 bond last December pending trial.
