An elderly man in Russia's Siberian city of Tobolsk has been attacked and beaten for removing the portrait of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin that was displayed on the windshield of a city bus, a news report said Wednesday.
The man ripped the portrait off the glass as he entered the bus, local Tobolsk.ru news portal reported Wednesday.
The action allegedly prompted the bus driver to leap out of his seat and beat the elderly passenger, while others inside the bus and on the street looked on, a woman who witnessed the incident was quoted as saying.
A spokesperson for Tobolsk's public transportation company confirmed the incident, but said the attacker who beat the elderly man was not the driver, but another passenger, a young man, the report said.
Police are investigating the incident, the report said.
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