Scooters And One Wheels

OAP who ‘loves animals’ ran over a pigeon together with his mobility scooter earlier than crushing it together with his stick

AN OAP who ran over a pigeon with his mobility scooter then crushed it with his stick says he “loves animals”.

Melville Shalders, 67, was seen killing the creature in footage which emerged online.

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Melville Shalders, 67, seen mowing down bird in CCTV footage

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Melville here seen approaching the bird

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The OAP, 67, seen crushing the pigeon’s head with his stick

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The OAP who ran over the pigeon with his mobility scooter says he ‘loves animals’Credit: Jason Bye

As some called for him to do bird for animal cruelty, he last night protested his innocence.

He said: “It was an accident. It wasn’t intentional at all. I’ve worked at an animal sanctuary. I love animals and I’m sorry.”

CCTV appears to show the fag-smoking pensioner swerve towards the bird before mowing it down on a busy shopping street in Norwich last Monday.

He carries on driving for a few yards before the knitting bird is then seen flapping its wings.

In a second video, which has not been made public, he presses a foot into his body as it lay injured while crushing his head with his walking stick.

He then hops back on his scooter, leaving the battered carcass by a barber shop doorstep.

The dad of two said last night: “I only did it because the pigeon was in a lot of pain.”

But pigeon lover Jenny Coupland, 40, who runs a cafe nearby, was far from convinced.

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Ms Coupland, who also runs pigeon protection group Peck Savers, said: “It’s disgusting.

“Nobody is asking anyone to think highly of pigeons — it’s about having some basic respect for animals.

“We don’t set the bar very high but he hasn’t even reached that standard — he doesn’t even think to move the body.”

Norfolk Police would not reveal if its officers had spoken to Shalders. But a spokeswoman said: “It is an offence.”

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