Regional investigators have taken over a criminal case against a Russian defence ministry contractor accused of tormenting a polar bear with an explosive, citing lack of progress by police.
“In connection with the bureaucratic delays … this criminal case has been … passed to the investigative organs for further investigation,” the prosecutor general in the Chukotka region in Russia’s far north-east said.
A criminal case was opened in December against Yevgeny Yugai over animal cruelty, which is punishable by a fine of up to 80,000 roubles (£770) or up to six months in jail.
The Chukotka prosecutor general’s statement was in response to a report in local media that the case had been closed, which was denied by local authorities.
The polar bear, a protected animal in Russia, was injured by employees of a defence ministry contractor working on Wrangel Island in the Arctic Ocean. A video of the incident, which showed the bear covered in blood with its mouth ajar, crawling, somersaulting and writhing in agony, sparked a national outcry.
“He ate an explosive, a firecracker,” the man filming the video says. “Why the fuck did we throw that?” he later says.
FlashNord reported that Yugai, a chef, had given the bear an explosive charge along with food in November.
Yugai told the site LifeNews that fellow employees threw some sort of explosive after the bear ran at him when he went outside for a smoke. He said he was receiving angry messages and threats on social media.
The chef was fined 3,000 roubles (£30) in December for an administrative violation, FlashNord reported.
Russia has been building up oil production and military bases in the Arctic as climate change melts sea ice.
