Dock workers got a shock when they opened a crate and found a raccoon inside yesterday.

The masked and stripy-tailed creature was lurking inside a container shipped from Baltimore to Bermuda Air Conditioning's depot in Pembroke.

Christopher Nash, engineering manager at BAC joked last night:"I'm told it's got no passport and looks very suspicious!"

Staff from the Department of Environmental Protection set a trap, and it was hoped to rescue the raccoon today after tempting it in with food and water overnight.BAC financial controller David Patterson explained how the drama began at the Mills's Creek dock around lunchtime.

"We were dealing with a delivery of a container. When we were unloading it, somebody heard something and saw a little head poking out – a raccoon with its little head poking out. "They shut the container at that point and it is still in the container. The guys were quite shocked at first," he said last night.

Both the SPCA and the Bermuda Aquarium and Zoo were contacted, who in turn called in the Department of Environmental Protection. Staff were on the scene within 15 minutes.

"They got one of these traps for dogs or cats and put that in the container. As of 5 p.m. it had still not gone in that. We figured there was a load of noise around the container and hopefully it will be in the trap in the morning. We've parked a forklift up against the doors so no-one can open it by accident," he said.

The container, which contained plumbing and air conditioning supplies, left Baltimore on Wednesday or Thursday of last week.

How the raccoon got into the crate remains a mystery. Mr. Patterson said BAC called the lady who does the packing in Baltimore, and she is as puzzled as they are. Gnawed cardboard boxes inside the crate show that the trapped animal – reported to be the size of a large cat – got hungry during its unplanned journey.

Although curious BAC workers took cameras to the scene, the raccoon has not been seen since the discovery and therefore no mug-shot of the "illegal immigrant" was available by press time.

According to Wikipedia, raccoons are native to North America. "As a result of escapes and deliberate introductions in the mid-20th century, raccoons are now also distributed across the European mainland, the Caucasus region and Japan," says the online encyclopedia.

"Their original habitats are deciduous and mixed forests, but due to their adaptability they have extended their range to mountainous areas, coastal marshes, and even urban areas, where some home owners consider them to be pests."