A man working as a mascot outside a shop in Vienna was arrested and later fined for wearing a shark costume that covered his face, something considered illegal under Austria's new 'burqa ban.'
According to The Independent, "the man was promoting the opening of a new electronics shop in Vienna, dressed in a pink and grey costume when police asked him to remove his head covering."
When he refused, saying he was "just doing his job," officers arrested him and later issued him a $171 fine.
Warda Network, the advertising agency which had hired the shark mascot, announced the fine in a Facebook post, saying:
"Today we were at the Mcshark shop opening and our shark mascot received a fine from the Vienna police because of the new ban on face-coverings! Life is not easy!"
Just over a week after the ban went into effect
The incident comes just over a week after Austria followed in the footsteps of France, Belgium, and many other European countries, enforcing a burqa ban - prohibiting Muslim women from wearing the outer garment used to cover themselves.
The ban, which went into effect on October 1, currently affects just 150 women who wear the garment in the country.
The new legislation doesn't just ban the face veil worn by Muslim women, but all face coverings, with a few exceptions.
It was heavily protested by thousands of people in the country but was eventually passed by its government.
People just can't even...
Soon after news of the incident started making the rounds online, people hit back, criticizing Austria's latest ban.
Tweeps also responded to the racist and offensive statement issued by the PR agency who had hired the man wearing the costume.
In the statement, an executive at the agency, Jakob Kattner, said:
"He was dressed as a stuffed animal and not as a terrorist."