Squirrels injured in park catapult attacks

Morecambe Councillor Paul Hart said he was "shocked, surprised and disappointed" to hear about the squirrel attacks

Reports of squirrels being attacked and injured in a park by a youth armed with a catapult are being investigated, police have said.

Morecambe councillor Paul Hart said he was "shocked, surprised and disappointed" to hear about the attacks in Happy Mount Park on Marine Road.

Lancashire Police said the park in Morecambe was regularly patrolled by officers, who have identified a young man who "will be spoken to in due course".

"You can't have somebody using, what is in effect, a firearm in a public park," said Hart.

'Serious weapons'

"We meet with the police regularly and they take notice of our concerns and I have a lot of confidence in them," the town councillor added.

"Hopefully they'll get the parents involved, get the schools involved and we won't have a recurrence.

"These modern catapults aren't like the forked stick and bit of elastic that we all might have had when we were children - these are serious weapons."

A spokesman for Lancashire Police said: "We are aware of reports of a young man using a slingshot to harm squirrels in Happy Mount Park, Morecambe.

"We have identified the young man and he will be spoken to in due course.

"The park is regularly patrolled by officers, and we encourage people in the local community to speak to them if they want to."