Does anyone in Milton Keynes own Plod, the police station cat that evades capture?

The cat, nicknamed Plod due to his unusual choice of residence, has been seen roaming about the CMK police car park for some weeks now, eating food from bins and drinking out of puddles.

Some people have tried to catch him and take him to the RSPCA or Cats Protection, but so far he’s evaded capture.

An unneutered black and white male, he looks grubby and unkempt – but surprisingly well fed.

This week his photo was posted on the popular Facebook page Milton Keynes Moan by a concerned member of the public.

He said: “This cat appears to be lost. If it belongs to you, it has been spotted near the Milton Keynes police station.”

The post prompted replies from other people who had spotted Plod. One said: “He's been around this area for some time now. I posted about him not too long ago but nothing came about it. People told me not to be 'daft' as he looks well fed.”

Another wrote: “He's unneutered and very skittish...Every time Ive tried to get close to scan him, he runs off.”

Others mentioned how dirty the cat looked, saying they felt sorry for him being out in such cold and wet weather.

The Milton Keynes & North Bucks branch of the RSPCA takes in hundreds of suffering stray cats every year. A spokesperson said: “It can be hard to tell if a cat is stray, is roaming but owned or living as a feral. One of our busiest roles here at the branch is trying to reunite lost and found pets with their family.”

But they said it was impossible to help every stray cat in the city, saying: "As a charity with limited resources, we can't respond to calls about healthy stray cats. Our priority has to be helping animals suffering from cruelty and neglect.”

The RSPCA advises people to take a found cat to a vet for a scan and register it on Animal Search UK database here.