A circus lion escaped in the Italy, forcing residents of Ladispoli to stay indoors

The huge adult male lion, reportedly named Kimba, escaped from the Rony Roller circus on Saturday evening (Sunday morning AEDT) in the seaside town of Ladispoli, near Rome.

The town is home to around 40,000 people.

The town’s mayor, Alessandro Grando, took to Facebook to warn residents to stay inside while circus staff and law enforcement officers worked to contain and recapture the lion.

“A lion escaped from the expected circus in Viale Mediterraneo,” he wrote.

“The animal was immediately traced to an adjacent water course.”

Residents took to social media, posting clips of the lion prowling the streets in X.

One video was taken from a car window, with the occupant trapped inside.

Local media outlet Corriere Della Sera reported that it took seven hours to capture the lion, in an operation which involved local police and three vets armed with rifles loaded with sedative bullets.

Kimba proved to be a tricky customer, escaping two attempts to capture him before finally succumbing.

In a second Facebook post, more than five hours after the first, Mr Grando confirmed the animal had been “sedated and captured”, and returned to circus staff.

Mr Grando used the incident to express his displeasure that the circus was in town and raise questions about animal exploitation in circuses.

“For those who will start asking: why do you still bring the circus with animals to Ladispoli? Why did the mayor authorize the circus?” he said.

“The answer is that I haven’t authorized anything, it’s not my responsibility to do it, and unfortunately we can’t forbid circuses with animals coming to our city.

“I hope this episode can raise some conscience, and that we can finally put an end to animal exploitation in circuses.”

Local media said investigations were underway to ensure Kimba is cared for in compliance with the rules on animal protection, whether his ownership documents are in order and whether the safety measures to avoid escapes were properly followed.