Reindeer, because of their connection to Christmas, are often associated with the spirit of giving. However, one Krasnoyarsk region resident trying to avoid criminal prosecution found that the animal's meat didn't make the best present to a police officer.
A district court in the Taimyr peninsula pronounced a local man guilty of attempting to bribe a law enforcement official with a reindeer carcass, the West Siberian Transport Prosecutor's Office said Monday. He was given a two-year suspended prison sentence and fined 144,000 rubles ($4,320).
In April, two residents of the northern city of Dudinka were detained for stealing diesel fuel at the Norilsk airport, Interfax reported.
Attempting to sweep the crime under the rug, one of the thieves offered a police officer reindeer meat if he didn't initiate criminal proceedings.
For evidence of the bribe, the officer asked the man to deliver the meat to the police garage and print a receipt for the carcass, which he valued at 5,400 rubles.
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