Story By: John Feng, Sub-Editor:  Joseph Golder, Agency: AsiaWire

Video Credit: AsiaWire

This is the moment three men shoot down doves with catapults on a public square before bashing them to death and eating them.

The incident happened in plain view of CCTV cameras on Zhongshan Square in Dalian, a coastal city in China’s north-eastern Liaoning Province.

The clip shows the suspects shooting down the city pigeons as they rest on a tree and then whacking the birds with a broomstick.

One of them then lands the killing blow by stomping on it before the doves are put in a plastic bag and carried away.

Authorities said main suspect Zhang, who was identified by his surname, and his two accomplices killed five of the city’s beloved city doves, which were introduced to the Zhongshan Square by the local government.

Images taken in the aftermath show white feathers scattered on the lawn where the birds had been captured and killed.

The trio were captured three days later on 23th April by Dalian’s Tianjin Street Police Station.

They reportedly admitted they shot down the birds and then ate them.

They remain in custody, with no punishment announced at the time of writing.

Picture Credit: AsiaWire