CONVICTED (2023) | Sean McWhinnie, born 16 August 1980, previously of Jackie Wigg Gardens, Totton, Southampton SO40 9LZ – caught on CCTV subjecting a six-month-old foal to a 90-minute beating while sister Maxine McWhinnie (details tbc) looked on unconcerned.
In November 2021 Sean McWhinnie, a traveller with links to Larkhall in Scotland, went to a farm in Romsey where a young New Forest crossbreed foal named Faith, belonging to his sister Maxine McWhinnie, was kept and carried out a sustained attack lasting more than one-and-a-half hours which left the six-month old animal “terrified”.
The attack took place while Maxine and another woman sat outside in full view of what was going on inside the stable. Neither woman did anything to intervene and appeared unconcerned.
Prosecuting for the RSPCA, Hazel Stephens told the court the charity had been alerted after staff at the yard saw the attack on CCTV.
She said: “It is a particularly shocking case. Faith had been caused pain and suffering through deliberate and unnecessary abuse.
“In one video clip McWhinnie can be seen punching the foal in the face causing it to spin 180 degrees.
“He repeatedly hits it with a rope halter and chases it. At one point the foal rears up and falls backwards and is extremely distressed.”
She added the foal, which would have only just been weaned and had no prior human interaction, was being cared for by someone with “zero understanding and empathy of its needs”.
In interview McWhinnie seemed unable to recognise any wrongdoing, she added, and he asked the officer “Have you ever broken a wild foal?”
The foal was removed and has since been kept at a rescue centre in Somerset, run by World Horse Welfare (WHW).
The welfare charity’s Field Officer Penny Baker said: “When I first got to the yard Faith was in a real state.
“She was very distressed and, when I tried to enter her stable, in self-defence she put her ears flat back, turned her bum towards me and tried to kick. She was terrified.”
Defending McWhinnie, Timothy Compton said he suffered his client was autistic, had ADHD and possible foetal alcohol syndrome.
He had suffered “many challenging situations” in his life including being placed in boarding school at the age of 13 due to his additional needs.
He added McWhinnie was from a traveller background and added: “In this society the approach to animals is not always the same as it is in wider society.
“He does [now] understand to a degree, given his difficulties, that the way he behaved was not the way he should have behaved.”
Career criminal McWhinnie, who has a history of violent offending (see here and here) admitted one count of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal.
He had earlier pleaded guilty to breaching a suspended sentence, intentionally causing alarm and distress, burglary, making off without payment, aggravated vehicle taking without consent and possession of class B drugs.
For these offences he was given a further 12 months in prison, also suspended for 21 months
The sentence for these offences had been deferred to give McWhinnie a chance to prove himself, the court heard.
Judge Forster said: “This case is truly shocking. The victim of what took place was a foal, and the animal was subject to unnecessary assault.
“[Vet] Dr Green describes in a report how the the foal was repeatedly hit, wrestled and terrorised within the stable.
“I make it clear that all right-thinking people take a serious view of any cruelty towards an animal, and parliament has increased the maximum sentence [to five years] for that offence to reflect the public concern of such behaviour.”
However, the judge said that despite the “shocking nature” of the offence he had suspended the sentence after taking in to consideration McWhinnie’s “difficulties in life” and said he believed his mental health challenges had contributed to his offending.
Commenting after the sentencing, WHW’s Penny Baker said: “We welcome the lifetime ban on keeping all animals, however, we are very disappointed that the prison term for this abhorrent offence was suspended because, in our opinion, this very young foal suffered terribly at the hands of Sean McWhinnie and the deliberate attack that he subjected her to.
“I feel – I’m sure along with the rest of this nation’s animal lovers – that this was worthy of a prison term with immediate effect.”
Sentencing |
Sean McWhinnie: five-month prison sentence, suspended for 21 months; 200 hours of unpaid work. Lifetime ban on keeping animals, although he can apply for this to be lifted after 10 years.
Maxine McWhinnie, who was charged with permitting the beating, agreed to a 10-year ban on keeping equines.
A totally horrible man. Violent,unrestrained cruelty against the foal and others including a young teenage girl. As for the stupid woman who allowed her pony to be attacked ,she was worse than him because she allowed it. Its not an excuse to come from a Traveller background . Its a cop out.