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Refugees board truck at Calais to find polar bear inside

The bear called Nissan was in the back of a truck outside the French town when a group of people managed to open the back doors

Charlie Atkin
Wednesday 14 October 2015 10:28 BST
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Calais migrants climb aboard truck with polar bear

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Video has emerged of the moment Calais migrants boarded a truck that contained a polar bear.

As the truck carrying the caged animal waited in Calais, migrants can be seen opening the back door as three men jump into the vehicle.

Later, police officers can be seen opening the rear door and removing the three men.

The polar bear, named Nissan, was on the final stages of his own journey from Eastern Europe in search of a better life in the UK - at the Yorkshire Wildlife Park in Doncaster.

He set off from Moscow Zoo earlier in the week by plane. But the second leg of his journey to South Yorkshire was by road from Frankfurt, Germany.

Nissan seemed relatively unfazed by the intruders and has since arrived at Yorkshire wildlife park, where he has joined the older bears - 15-year-old Victor and two-year-old Pixel - in its huge Project Polarreserve.

The spokesman said: "He's absolutely fine. He appears to be settling in well with Victor and Pixel."

Additional reporting by PA

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