‘Hired hunter’ kills bull that eluded Charlotte searchers for days. Police cite owner.

A 900-pound longhorn bull that eluded police and other searchers since Monday met its end on a Charlotte street Friday night, killed by a hired hunter, police said Saturday.

Police cited the owner of the bull for failing to restrain an animal and for creating a nuisance, according to a news release by the CMPD Animal Care & Control Division.

A lead Animal Care & Control officer has been assigned to investigate “permits, licenses or agriculture exceptions,” police said in the release.

In a media statement late Friday, an Animal Care & Control spokeswoman said the owner had killed the bull, but she corrected that and offered more details Saturday about the bull’s final moments.

At 7:47 p.m., Animal Care & Control officers responded to a call that the animal was creating a traffic hazard in the 9200 block of Old Moores Chapel Road, according to Saturday’s news release.

Officers from the CMPD Freedom Division were already there, and the owner of the bull was contacted, according to Animal Care & Control. Police haven’t released the name of the owner of the bull.

CMPD issued a brief statement Friday night on Twitter, now known as X, saying only that the bull had been found in the 9300 block of Moores Chapel Road. That’s near Interstate 485 in western Mecklenburg County.

“Thank you to everyone for your assistance,” police said.

The Moores Chapel area is near where the bull escaped when its owner tried to protect the animal by moving it from a pasture to an enclosed area.

The owner, with CMPD officers present, tried to lasso the bull, but the animal escaped into woods, police said. Even a heat-seeking drone didn’t find the bull in recent days.

Police urged residents who might see the bull to stay a safe distance away and call 311 with its location.

It was not immediately known Saturday who spotted the animal before it was killed.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.