Man broke rabbit's neck and set it alight in Eccles pub Published duration 20 June 2011

A man smashed a baby rabbit on a picnic table before setting it alight in front of drinkers in a beer garden at a Greater Manchester pub.

Greater Manchester Police and the RSPCA have begun a joint investigation into the incident at the Eccles Cross in Eccles on Saturday.

Witnesses said the man had been trying to sell the rabbit inside the pub.

Police believe the man snapped the rabbit's neck after setting fire to it before dropping it in a bin.

A police spokesman said: "At about 11.30am on 18 June 2011, police were called to the Eccles Cross pub on Regent Street, Eccles, following a report of cruelty to a rabbit.