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Read the press release here.

Coyote Evades Capture by Police in Riverside Park

By  Trevor Kapp Emily Frost and Nikhita Venugopal | April 22, 2015 7:40am | Updated on April 22, 2015 10:44am

 The NYPD's 24th Precinct tweeted that the coyote
The NYPD's 24th Precinct tweeted that the coyote "is deeply nestled in the brush" and that officials have concluded the search near Riverside Park.
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Twitter/NYPD24Pct

UPPER WEST SIDE — A coyote gave police the slip during an hours-long chase in Riverside Park early Wednesday morning, the NYPD said.

Authorities tracked the animal into upper Manhattan after it was first seen between 5:30 and 5:45 a.m. near 87th Street, officials said. 

Police scrambled to find and capture the roving coyote for about three hours in the park and along Riverside Drive.

It was last seen near the 125th Street exit off the Henry Hudson parkway at about 9 a.m., according to Capt. Marlon Larin, commanding officer of the 24th Precinct.  

"It went deep into the shrubbery and we lost visual contact, so we let him be," Larin told DNAinfo New York.  

The coyote is deeply nestled in the brush. @NYPDnews operations have concluded. Thank you. #24PCT#UWS #community pic.twitter.com/ujUUlVmApM

— NYPD 24th Precinct (@NYPD24Pct) April 22, 2015

During the three-hour search, it was also spotted around 113th Street, as well as near the General Grant National Memorial near West 122nd Street in the park, according to officials. 

"He was 10 feet from me," a police source said. "Then he walked away." 

Police are continuing to monitor the area, Larin said. 

Park-goers went on with their morning activities in the green space Wednesday although authorities said it was closed during the search.  

A slew of coyotes have descended on New York City in recent months, including one that was captured in Riverside Park in January and another that got stuck on the roof of a Queens bar late last month.

A 50-pound coyote that was wandering around Chelsea earlier this month was also caught after police shot it with tranquilizer darts.

"I'd hate to see someone come here and do away with them," said Victor Perez, 65, of Morningside Heights, who walking with his 12-year-old pitbull Stitch in the park Wednesday morning.  

"They have as much a right to be here as we do."