Police in Alabama have charged a pony horse with ‘criminal trespassing and resisting arrest’ after two-hour pursuit.
The authorities also released body cam footage of officers attempting to capture the escaped pony for two hours.
The Tuscaloosa Police had received a report that the pony was roaming free in the Alberta neighborhood at around 10pm on March 20.
He was ‘extremely unwilling’ to go with the officers, and not interested in the pizza crusts or peppermints they offered, the department said in a statement.
In the body cam footage, one officer was seen trying to hurl a rope over the pony’s head as it tried to get away. It was eventually captured and taken to a riding school, but it is unclear who owns it, police said.
‘Three officers engaged in a low-speed foot pursuit, following Ginuwine up and down driveways and through people’s back yards for nearly two hours,’ it said.
The pony, whose name is not known and whose owner has not been identified, has been temporarily named Ginuwine, police said.
He was taken to the Therapeutic Riding of Tuscaloosa, a riding school which will serve as a permanent home in the event his owners are never found.
After it was finally captured, police released a mock ‘mugshot’ of the pony and said it would be ‘charged’ with third-degree criminal trespassing and resisting arrest, listing its bond at $800 bond.
‘Honestly, we get calls about things all the time, I didn’t really believe it. When I drove over there I looked and realized there was actually is a pony in the yard running free,’ said one of the responding officers.
‘Never have I been called out to a horse before,’ said another, who was seen in the footage throwing the lasso.
‘Tuscaloosa’s famous Ginuwine Pony is currently being fostered with us,’ the school confirmed.
The school appears to be using the pony’s fame to generate some additional revenue.
‘Ginuwine will be available for visitors during our Easter egg hunt Saturday, April 1 from 2 to 4 PM,’ it announced on Facebook.
‘He’s still a little nervous so we ask that