Capitan the donkey was a little African ass that was found, malnourished and badly treated, wandering the poorer section of Almeria city.
The locals of the area, despite not being known for cooperating with the police, did call them several times to report the animal, and the fact that wandering gangs of kids kept attacking it.
Eventually, one of the locals started a local petition which forced the environmental police to locate the animal. By the time Capitan was rescued, over 180,000 people had signed the online petition.
Capitan is now safe in a donkey sanctuary in Seville. But locals continue to demand to know who was mistreating the lovely little animal.
The animal was unregistered, and so police believe that the owner didn’t come forwards to claim him because it’s illegal to have an unlicensed donkey.
But the supposed owner has now been located, a 34 year old local, and charged with animal cruelty, abandonment and unlicensed animal ownership.
Two kids, 16 and 15 years of age, have also been identified thanks to locals, as those who were maltreating the animal and throwing stones at it as he wandered the streets. They have been charged with animal cruelty.
The Almeria Local Police have thanked residents for their help in locating the vandals.