Palm Springs woman reaches under her bed in search of her cats, finds a burglar there instead

Christian Vatovec, 25, fled the scene when the 61-year-old woman discovered him

Christian Vatovec was hiding under the woman's bed, pictured here in a WPTV News report (YouTube)

It is the stuff of nightmares: a woman who reached under her bed in search of her two cats, expected to feel the soft fur coats of her pets, found herself instead touching human skin.

The 61-year-old woman in Palm Springs, Florida, had discovered a burglar who was hiding under her bed.

The man fled the scene and jumped a fence as soon as the woman, who has not been named, found his hiding place.

Palm Springs police caught up with the man named as Christian Vatovec, 25, of Lake Worth, the Sun Sentinel reports.

A neighbour had phoned the police after a stranger had been found knocking on local residents’ doors, before watching the man walk towards the rear of one home, the police report said.

The police report said the woman had “felt she had touched human skin” as she looked for her cats, discovering that “the suspect was hiding under her bed”.

The woman said a digital camera and a gold ankle bracelet had been stolen from her home.

After Vatovec was found, he was taken back to the home where the woman identified him.

Vatovec was held at the Palm Beach County Jail under a $53,000 (£35,500) bail and faces charges of burglary, grand theft and resisting arrest.