Gardner, Kansas Set Trail Cameras for a Mountain Lion. They Caught a "Female Werewolf."

Someone told Gardner, Kansas police there might be a mountain lion near a city park. So the department set up two trail cameras.

What the cameras recorded, according to police, was not a cat.

What police set up

Per KMBC on November 29, 2016, Gardner police said they put two trail cameras near Celebration Park after being contacted about a possible mountain lion in the area. KSHB quoted Lt. Lee Krout of the Gardner Police Department: "It's not impossible for there to be a mountain lion in this area because there have been reports in the past."

Police expected coyotes, foxes and raccoons. KSHB says officers got a coyote, a raccoon and "other wildlife." They did not see a mountain lion, the department posted on Facebook.

What the cameras caught instead

KMBC says that over three days, the cameras recorded people in costumes: gorillas, Santa Claus, "something that looked like a female werewolf," a swamp creature, a man in a strange mask and a woman with a walker carrying a bow and arrow. KSHB adds that the department's Facebook post included multiple photos of people dressed up in front of the cameras.

Krout told KMBC: "It was actually very humorous. It mean, it was quite obvious that it was people playing a joke or just having fun." He told KSHB the pictures made him laugh immediately and that he called other officers over to see them.

The department's Facebook post, as quoted by KSHB, read: "We would like to sincerely thank the persons responsible as it made our day when we pulled up what we expected to be hundreds of pictures of coyotes, foxes and raccoons. Thank you to the citizens who noticed the cameras. Your effort and sense of humor are greatly appreciated."

The photos go viral

Less than 24 hours after the pictures appeared on Facebook, KMBC says, they had been viewed more than 138,000 times. Some people asked whether a crime had been committed. Krout said no. He had one message for the people in the costumes: "I would just say thanks. We don't always get fun things like that to look at and people aren't always as respectful as they were."

NBC News carried a 1:34 video of KSHB's report on November 30, with the line that the camera set up after a reported mountain lion sighting "yields hilarious surprise."

What the record settles

The agency, the explanation and the quotes are on the record, and the "werewolf" is a label the press put on a trail-cam frame. Police say it was people playing a joke, with no crime. KMBC, KSHB and NBC all work from the same police Facebook post and interviews with Lt. Krout, so they are one account reported three times.

That settles the photos. It doesn't settle everything the story touched. The original tip, a possible mountain lion, produced no cat on camera, and Krout said only that such reports have occurred before.

Cameras left in a public park for three days get visitors, and in Gardner some of them dressed up. A trail-cam "werewolf" with no police explanation attached would be a different question.

Bottom line

Per KMBC and KSHB, Gardner police set two trail cameras near Celebration Park after a possible mountain lion report. Police say the cameras caught people in costumes, including something that looked like a female werewolf, gorillas, a swamp creature and Santa Claus, over three days. Lt. Lee Krout says it was a joke and that no crime was committed.

Compare how the site screens other claims in London, Ohio's Dogman Hotline Is Weeding Hoaxes.

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Attribution / source table

• Claim: Two trail cameras at Celebration Park after possible mountain lion; three days; costumes (gorillas, Santa, "female werewolf," swamp creature, mask, woman with walker and bow and arrow); Krout's quotes; 138,000+ views in under 24 hours; no crime
  Attribution: KMBC 9 News (Kelly Eckerman), Nov 29, 2016
  Link: KMBC
• Claim: Krout on mountain lion reports; coyote, raccoon and wildlife; no mountain lion seen; the police Facebook thank-you text
  Attribution: KSHB 41 (Melissa Greenstein), Nov 29, 2016
  Link: KSHB
• Claim: Video of KSHB's report (1:34); "hilarious surprise"
  Attribution: NBC News, Nov 30, 2016
  Link: NBC News video

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Legal / disclaimer footer

Entertainment and cryptid-news commentary only. Nothing here confirms a werewolf or any other creature. The costume explanation, the police statements and the view counts are given as KMBC, KSHB and NBC News reported them. Individuals in the costumes were not identified in any source and are not identified here. The map location is approximate to town level.