Police in New Jersey have arrested a suspect accused of terrorizing a Paterson neighborhood: an emu.

The four-foot-tall bird was first spotted Tuesday morning near the city’s border it shares with Totowa, police say.

After a series of close encounters, animal control officers were finally able to catch the long-legged bird and lock it up in a large animal cart, according to Paterson police.

It’s been taken to a shelter, where it’s due to be examined by a veterinarian, Chief Animal Control Officer John DeCando says.

The emu’s capture has left authorities with several unanswered questions.

A rep for the Paterson Police Department says officers have yet to determine where the wayward bird came from; and DeCando says animal control officials have not figured out the emu’s age or sex. “But I can tell you it needs a bath,” DeCando says.