Tallinn - Authorities in Estonia are mulling what to do with a 45-year-old Russian picked up drunk and sodden after swimming illegally across the European Union and Schengen zone borders.
The man, identified only as Sergei, lost his passport while on a trip to Russia and was trying to get back to his home in Sillamae, a small town in north-eastern Estonia near the Russian border.
A bridge spans the 150 metres of water that separates the Russian town of Ivangorod from the Estonian town of Narva on the far side of the river of the same name.
Most of Narva's 67 000-strong community are Russian-speakers and less than half are Estonian. Many cross the bridge daily to shop on the Russian side. The Russian citizen will not face criminal charges, but could be fined for breaching the EU and Schengen zone borders, officials said. - Sapa-AFP