TRAINED LION ESCAPES, ROAMS ACTON HIGHWAY BEFORE CAPTURE.

Byline: Bhavna Mistry Daily News Staff Writer

Soledad Canyon Road became Acton's mane drag late Wednesday when a male lion was seen sauntering down the darkened highway.

This was no pesky mountain lion hunting in civilization for food. It was a full-fledged lion that escaped its cage at a nearby exotic animal compound.

The beast was spotted heading south along Soledad near Bootlegger Road. An anxious - albeit hard-to-believe - call came into the Antelope Valley sheriff's station, but before deputies responded, the owner had the lion safely back home, sheriff's officials said.

``It was a tame lion,'' said Deputy Andy Lynch. ``They just put a chain around its neck, put it into a trailer and took it home. The animal didn't appear to be dangerous.''

Officials said they were unsure how long the lion had been out but that it was recaptured within 20 minutes of their notification.

``They were just happy to find it,'' Lynch said.

The lion belonged to Randy Miller, owner of Randy Miller's Predators In Action, officials said.

``They initially called us because they thought it was ours,'' said Trudy Farley, an animal handler at Shambala Preserve. ``So I checked our cats but it wasn't one of ours.''

Shambala Preserve and Randy Miller Predators are neighbors along the 6800 block of Soledad Canyon Road. The Shambala Preserve rescues abused or unwanted animals.

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Photo: (Color only in AV edition) A trained lion like this one at Randy Miller's Predators in Action escaped late Wednesday.

Hans Gutknecht/Daily News