A Russian couple who tried to avoid buying a train ticket for their daughter by putting her in a suitcase were caught out when the case was stolen.

The parents of the young girl from Vitebsk admitted they had not been paying attention to the case when they stopped off for a "few drinks" after arriving at a Moscow train station, reported Pravda.

Police later found the girl, aged three, wandering the streets lost.

The crooks had taken her out of the case and left her behind - but kept the case.