Kangaroo Abused In Dublin Nightclub Prank

Gardai are investigating an incident at a Dublin nightclub in which a small kangaroo or wallaby was released onto the dance-floor during a 30th birthday party.

Video footage of the animal being abused by revellers surfaced on the internet amid reports that it had died following the party.

Some reports even suggested the wallaby was plied with alcohol and drugs during the sickening stunt.

So far, the body of the wallaby has not been located, although there have been claims that it was buried in the Dublin mountains when news reports sparked a national outrage.

There has been condemnation from around the world, including from Australia, where the Wallaby is the national symbol and where the mobile phone footage was included in news broadcasts.

"Absolutely disgusting. Ireland should be ashamed of itself," one Australian wrote on a newspaper website.

Grainy mobile phone footage posted on Facebook shows the marsupial being released into the middle of the party at Dublin's Clarion Hotel in Liffey Valley to the theme tune of the Australian TV series, Skippy the Bush kangaroo.

Dozens of partygoers took pictures on their phones and cameras as the poor animal was manhandled.

One man swings the wallaby in the air and pretends to dance suggestively with it to cheers from the party.

The hotel's manager Garret Marrinan said one of his staff members became suspicious when he noticed a commotion on the dance-floor in the hired function room.

He thought it was a large dog and instructed the security men to remove it.

But by the time they got through the crowd, the animal and the box it came in were gone.

It was only the next day when hotel staff were contacted by Gardai that they realised it had been a kangaroo.

"We have no idea where it came from or how it got out of the hotel," said Mr Marrinan,

"The whole thing was all a bit upsetting to be honest with you."

The Dublin Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (DSPCA) said it had received five complaints including one from someone who claimed to have attended the party.

DSPCA manager Orla Aungier said, "We have also been told that after the party, the animal had died. That is only alleged, but the most important thing for us is to find out where the animal is and if it is OK."

Gardai are investigating how the partygoers got their hands on the kangaroo in the first place.

They questioned the owners of a circus located less than a mile from the hotel called Australian Super Circus Sydney.

Alexander Scholl said he owned two kangaroos but denied either of them had been involved in the incident.

"They think it was one of my wallabies, but it was definitely not. I would never lend them out to a nightclub with all the noisy music," he said, "Someone told them the wallabies are dead. I said if it is dead it is not one of mine. I showed them Skippy and Sydney".

Officers are following a number of lines of inquiry.

They are investigating if someone could have removed the kangaroo from Mr Scholl's circus and returned it without his knowledge.

They are also looking into claims it was sourced in the Cavan area, and at whether or not it came from Lambay Island where there is a small wallaby population.

Gardai are hoping CCTV footage from the hotel can help answer some of the questions about the animal's fate.

They say many of the partygoers have not been fully co-operating with the inquiry.

The incident has led to calls for new laws on the ownership and sale of exotic animals in Ireland.

The sale or ownership of exotic animals is not regulated in Ireland, but it is against the law to cause any animals cruelty.

Wallabies, crocodiles and zebras were all currently available for sale on Irish websites, in many cases without the need for license.