The Port Morant Police in St Thomas have a frightful beast on their hands if the stories of a nine-year-old girl and a local farmer turn out to be true.

The police are now investigating reports that a creature, described as a tall, bushy beast, attacked the child while she played with her friends during a break at school.

Bundle of bush

The police told THE STAR that last Tuesday, about 11 .a.m, the girl was playing outside when she looked around and saw something she said looked like a 'bundle of bush'. The child reportedly told the police that the beast was very tall and its hands were bushy and furry.

It is reported that the beast held on to the child's legs and attempted to pull her into a nearby gully. The child's screams and cries were heard by a friend who rushed to her aid by pulling her hand.

Frightened, both girls ran to tell the other students what had happened. However, they did not believe them and demanded that they take them to the spot so they could see this creature for themselves. The nine-year-old, the police said, initially refused to go, but was pulled by her friends. When they got close to the spot, she fainted.

The police were alerted and a search of the area was conducted. However, this yielded nothing. Attempts to speak to the mother of the child were unsuccessful.

Monkey-like

THE STAR was told however, that sometime before last Tuesday's attack, a farmer from the Clifton Hill area of the parish had a run-in with a similar monster. It is reported that the man was attending to his crops when a 'monkey-like' creature appeared. He escaped, but his dog was not so lucky. It was eaten.

Since the incident, he has not returned to his farm.

Although they have nothing concrete to work with, the police say they are still investigating the reports and are trying to gather as much information as they can.

Just last month, residents of Clark's Town in Manchester complained about a monkey-like creature that was wreaking havoc on their crops. This beast they said, had a furry body, four hands and was very fast.