No original photo or video of this event is known.
'Catfoot' of Binley Woods: A Big Cat in the Police Newsletter
Last reviewed Next review
We review and update every article weekly. When the record changes, so does the article. How we review
On Coventry's edge, residents kept telling patrolling officers about a large dark cat seen at dusk.
Verdict: Residents keep reporting a big cat, but there is no photo, track or carcass yet.
Original sources: Stoke and Wyken NPT weekly update, Coombe Fields sighting (WMnow) · Stoke and Wyken NPT weekly update (Neighbourhood Alert) · Coventry Live, 5 Oct 2026
Sources West Midlands Police, Stoke and Wyken NPT weekly update (Neighbourhood Alert, Oct 2026); Coventry Live (5 Oct 2026)
Binley Woods is a village on the eastern edge of Coventry, with woodland and brooks around it. Weekly updates from the local Stoke and Wyken Neighbourhood Policing Team, part of West Midlands Police, mostly cover shoplifting and bike security. The one published in early October 2026 also mentioned a cat.
After a few quiet weeks, the team wrote, “various members of the public” had again come to officers about “a large black cat sighting, again in the Binley Woods area.” It had been seen by several witnesses and reported to officers on patrol. Residents said they had seen “Catfoot,” the village’s name for it, numerous times on late-evening walks. It stayed at a distance, looked like “a large dark coloured animal of the feline variety,” and once noticed, it darted off into the woodland along the stream.
Officers sent each witness to the British Big Cats Society. The update asked people not to approach any animal that might be injured, escaped or dangerous, to send photos or video with the time and place to wildlife organizations, to report welfare concerns to the RSPCA, and to call police only for an immediate threat. With the clocks going back at the end of October, it added, walkers should wear high-visibility clothing.
Coventry Live reported the update on 5 October as “new multiple sightings” and described the animal as a possible black panther. That is the paper’s framing; the police said only “a large black cat.”
Sources
- West Midlands Police, Stoke and Wyken NPT, weekly update (Neighbourhood Alert)
- Coventry Live, “New ‘multiple sightings of Catfoot’ as Beast of Binley Woods seen ‘darting around’” (5 Oct 2026)
Weighing it
The police confirm only that residents keep reporting it. No photo, video, track or carcass has been published, and no officer is reported to have seen the animal. Large black domestic cats seen at a distance in poor light explain many British “big cat” reports, but nothing here settles this one. The illustration on this page is an AI rendition, not evidence. The map pin marks the village.
Verdict
Open Residents keep reporting a big cat, but there is no photo, track or carcass yet.
Evidence ledger
Each claim in this file, the source it rests on, and how well it holds up: 1 corroborated · 2 unverified. What the labels mean.
| Claim | Source | Type · date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Several residents told officers on patrol they had seen a large black cat in the Binley Woods area; police relayed this in a weekly community update.Corroborates that the reports were made, not what the animal was. | Stoke and Wyken NPT update (Neighbourhood Alert); Coventry Live (5 Oct 2026) | official · Oct 2026 | corroborated |
| The animal is a black leopard or other exotic cat.Police said only 'a large black cat'. | Coventry Live framing ('black panther') | press · 5 Oct 2026 | unverified |
| Photos or video of the animal exist. | No published images found | press · Oct 2026 | unverified |
Update log
-
We added this case file.
-
Police reported a new sighting farther out. A later weekly update from the Stoke and Wyken Neighbourhood Policing Team says residents told officers on patrol at Caludon Castle Park that big cat talk was spreading, and that the recent sightings were in Coombe Fields, the farmland and woodland around Coombe Abbey on the Coventry and Warwickshire border, more than 3 miles from Binley Woods. Residents told officers they saw a large black cat that moved at a deliberate pace and then vanished, at about 9:30 PM local time (20:30 UTC) on Oct. 18, 2026. Some residents believe the animal is drawing people to the area to look for it. As before, no officer is reported to have seen it and no photo, track or carcass has been published. Status stays open.
Sources West Midlands Police, Stoke and Wyken NPT, 'Weekly update' (WMnow / Neighbourhood Alert message 514283, sent after 18 Oct 2026): https://www.wmnow.co.uk/Alerts/A/514283/Weekly-update
-
Weekly re-check of sources; no newer change to the record. Next check November 9, 2026.
Discussion
Discuss this case on the on-site Community board — no GitHub account required. Prefer a private tip for the editorial team? Submit a Sighting.
House rules: Community guidelines.