A POLICE horse that died following an accident in his paddock may have been spooked by a drone.

Fimber tried to jump a fence and collided with a wooden post, after being scared by something at West Yorkshire Police's Carr Gate headquarters, near Wakefield, on October 15 this year.

Now officers are appealing for information to find the owner of a radio-controlled drone that was found at the site three days later.

The drone is a Walkera Runner 250 and is about nine inches long, said police.

Detective Superintendent Simon Atkinson, who is leading the investigation, said: "We have reviewed CCTV footage which shows Fimber bolting, seemingly in reaction to something nearby. This resulted in him being seriously injured and led to his death. We cannot discount that this drone was involved.

"There is a possibility that Fimber was reacting to the drone landing nearby or being close to him. We know he was used to the helicopter taking off and landing nearby and by the nature of his training would be used to loud noises, which tends to suggest it was something unusual that caused him to react.

"I appreciate that radio-controlled drones are becoming increasingly popular and I am not wanting to detract from the pleasure people get from flying them. Clearly flying one near to an operational police location such as Carr Gate, where the helicopter is regularly taking off and landing, is not appropriate and could have very serious consequences.

See video of Fimber trying to jump a fence after being spooked

"I want to appeal directly to the owner of the drone to come forward so that we can bring this matter to a conclusion."

Fimber, age 14, joined the Force in 2004 and served for 11 years.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Temporary Detective Sergeant Alex Grummitt via 101.