Escaped Giraffe Runs Amok in Italian Town

Circus animal on the run for four hours before being tranquilized. It later died from cardiac arrest

An escaped circus giraffe rampaged through the streets of an Italian town before being stopped on Friday.

The animal eluded its captors and damaged property for fours hours in the town of Imola, southeast of Bologna, before being cornered, the state-run Italian news agency ANSA reported.

Photos and video captured by witnesses show local police chasing the 2,000-pound giraffe as it galloped through the streets. The Rinaldo Orfei Circus, which had been caring for the giraffe, also pursued the escaped animal in a van.

Police finally managed to stop the giraffe in a grocery store parking lot, ANSA reported. Tranquilizers were used to subdue the animal, which was returned to the Rinaldo Orfei Circus.

It later died from cardiac arrest at the circus.
 

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