Bull Leaps Into Spectator Area During Spanish Bullfight

Spectators screamed as an enraged half-tonne bull leaped over a safety barrier and into the spectator area during a bullfight in Murcia, Spain. The six-year-old bull, named Malacara, was being goaded by matadors when it suddenly charged at one of the performers.

As the matador retreated to the wooden fence, the bull veered sharply and cleared the barrier, flying towards the front row of spectators. The audience was saved from injury by a concrete wall in front of them at the Plaza de Toros de Murcia. The incident occurred on September 20.

Juan Perez, a visitor seated a few rows back, described the scene: "I saw it with my own eyes, the bull jumping over the fence into the crowd. The animal was out-of-control. It was extremely lucky that nobody was injured."

Footage shows the 508kg animal scampering along the ringside before being ushered back onto the sand. It was subsequently killed, in accordance with local tradition.

According to an official, the bullfighter Duarte Fernandes used a killing lance and a short sword to finish the bull. The crowd cheered for the bullfighter to be awarded an ear, but the presiding judge refused, and Fernandes received an ovation instead.

Malacara was the sixth and final bull of the afternoon at a mounted bullfight that concluded the Murcia Bullfighting Fair. The official report from the plaza noted that Malacara had jumped into the exit alley twice during the same event. The bull originated from the Los Espartales ranch and was assigned to Portuguese mounted bullfighter Duarte Fernandes.

This is not the first instance of a bull entering spectator areas in recent months. In July, a bull seriously injured four spectators after leaping into a crowd during a festival in Colombia. During that 'Corraleja' event, video footage showed the bull chasing people before jumping over a fence into the stands, causing panic.