A traffic police officer on holiday in Russia's Far East accidentally killed his brother while the two men were fleeing from a bear, Russia's Interfax news agency reported Monday.
“The men were planting ginseng [a root used in some medicines and tea] when the bear appeared and the men tried to run away from the wild animal,” Interfax cited a police spokesman as saying.
One of the men was carrying a rifle and, as he was running, tripped over. The weapon went off in his hands and a bullet hit his brother, who died of his injuries at the scene, Interfax reported.
The traffic police officer, who worked in the city of Vladivostok, was reportedly on holiday in the Dalnegorsk district of the Primorye region.
A manslaughter case has been opened, Interfax reported, citing an unidentified law enforcement official.