Orphans in Yakutsk are left without the free cakes they were promised. (State officials ate them all.)

On August 22, Russia celebrated National Flag Day. In Yakutsk, there was a public fair, and state officials and ordinary locals joined a bike race. And there were a lot of free cakes. There were 280 kilograms (617 pounds) of free cakes. And Yatkutia's local sights and attractions were painted in frosting on top of the cakes.

The 1,400 cakes were meant for local orphans and children living in poverty, and the plan was to distribute the confections after the bike race. The kids were scheduled to arrive at the festival as the bike race was ending, but the race started earlier, and the cakes were nearly gone by the time the children began arriving: people finishing the bike race—many of them local state officials—claimed the cakes for themselves.

According to a local television report, there were, however, still a few cakes left over when the first orphans started showing up. Those who got there first apparently made off with as many cakes as they could carry.