http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-10695037Parasailing
donkey stunt sparks police inquiry
The move was intended as an advertising campaign Police in southern Russia are investigating allegations of animal
cruelty after a donkey was made to parasail as part of an advertising
stunt, Russian media report.
The donkey was sent up into the sky last week by entrepreneurs
hoping to attract people to their private beach.
Witnesses near the beach on the Sea of Azov in the Krasnodar region
said the animal had been screaming in fear.
It landed in the water and was pulled onto the shore, said police.
"The donkey screamed and children cried," regional police
spokeswoman Larisa Tuchkova told AFP news agency.
"No-one had the brains to call police."
Instead, bystanders took photos and phoned newspapers, she said.
"It was put up so high into the sky that the children on the beach
cried and asked their parents: 'Why did they tie a doggy to a
parachute?'" Taman newspaper reported last week.
"The donkey landed in an atrocious manner: it was dragged several
metres along the water, after which the animal was pulled out half-alive
onto the shore," the paper reported.
Police began to investigate after the incident, which occurred at
the coastal village of Golubitskaya, was aired on national news on
Tuesday.
The businessmen responsible may face criminal charges for animal
cruelty, according to news agency RIA-Novosti.