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Earls Colne: Couple spot the Beast of Essex

From the archive, first published Monday 13th Mar 2006.

A shopping trip ended in a scary return journey when a couple saw a large animal at the side of a lane.

Carpenter Matt Barrett, 28, was driving back to his Earls Colne home with girlfriend Georgina Kearton, 22, of Great Tey, when they saw two big eyes looking at them from the side of the road.

Mr Barrett said: "We were on the back road between Great Tey and Earls Colne coming back from Tollgate, Stanway, and just as we got to the boundary by Chalkney Woods, we saw an animal bigger than my afghan dog.

"My girlfriend screamed."

Mr Barrett, of Lowefields, said the most striking features about the animal were its eyes and long sweeping fat tail but the couple noticed it had pointed ears and long legs.

The pair retraced their journey with Miss Kearton ready with a camera but the animal had disappeared.

Have you seen the Beast of Essex? Contact our newsroom on 01206 508429.

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Published Monday, March 13, 2006

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