Brown Bear Roams the Streets of Moscow Suburb

A brown bear has been spotted on streets of Mytishchi, Moscow's residential suburb with a population of about 170,000, a source in the city's emergency services told TASS on Tuesday.

"Overnight to Tuesday, a brown bear was roaming streets of Mytishchi, near the Klyazminskoye water reservoir. Where did the bear came from and who its owner is, still remains unknown. Its current whereabouts are also unknown, and the search continues," the source said.

A golf club located next to where the bear was seen, denied ownership of the animal when contacted by TASS.

"No animals are kept on our territory, even dogs are not allowed," an employee said.

The Moscow Region's Minister of Environment and Natural Resources Andrei Razin warned residents against trying to catch the bear.

"At the moment, the search is being carried out by specialists. We ask citizens to avoid any contact with the animal, because bears are predators and thus require special handling. Clearly, a bear that had spent a lengthy period of time in a cage will behave in an unpredicted manner. Catching a furious bear without doing no harm to it is a task that only experienced professionals can cope with," he said. "If you see the bear, your best choice would be to stay as far away from it as possible."

"Very often, owners do not realize how dangerous their pet animal can be. This case is not the first of its kind for the ministry. Recently, a lynx fell out of a window in the Khimki urban district, and prior to that we had to chase a boa constrictor. I call upon everyone to choose pets responsibly, because the more exotic your choice is, the more negative are consequences that it may entail," the minister said./TASS