This case concerns father and son David and Jack Stanbury, whose long‑running persecution of wildlife was exposed after David was arrested at a wild boar hunt in the Forest of Dean on New Year’s Eve 2024.
When police seized his phone, they uncovered a vast archive of trophy videos, messages and images documenting the killing of deer, foxes and badgers, along with disturbing footage of dogs being mistreated, intimidated and forced into violent encounters.
Further devices seized during warrants in October 2025 revealed even more offences, implicating both men in sustained cruelty.
One of the dogs seen in the footage — a lurcher called Bear — was found at David’s home and removed to safety.
David Stanbury, born around 1972, lives at Denstead Lane in Chartham Hatch, Canterbury, where he runs an upmarket Airbnb lodge called Canterbury Cabin with his much younger Latvian wife, Viktorija.
The couple’s online presence projected a polished, idyllic lifestyle, but the content recovered from David’s phone told a very different story.
He had previously been charged in June 2025 alongside Thomas Bishop, born c. 1992, of Grove Close in Pontefract, West Yorkshire, after a dead boar was found in the Forest of Dean. In that earlier case, David faced allegations of hunting a wild mammal with dogs, possession of bladed articles and causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal. Bishop pleaded guilty and was fined but Stanbury denied the charges. The outcome of that case against him is not known.
Jack Stanbury, born around 1999 and living in Vale View Road, Aylesham, Canterbury, was drawn into the investigation when messages and videos on his father’s devices showed him participating in the hunting and abuse.
Although younger, Jack’s involvement was not peripheral; he was actively engaged in the persecution and mistreatment of both wildlife and dogs.
Judge Fowler refused to allow the videos to be played in court due to their disturbing nature, relying instead on detailed descriptions of the content.
When warrants were executed at both men’s addresses, officers found Bear, the lurcher seen in the footage, living in poor conditions. He was seized and taken into RSPCA care.
Additional phones recovered during the searches revealed further offences, demonstrating that the cruelty was not isolated but part of a sustained pattern.
Sentencing
On 25 September 2026, both men were sentenced at Cheltenham Magistrates’ Court.
David Stanbury received a three‑year prison sentence, suspended for three years, along with 100 hours of unpaid work, 15 Rehabilitation Activity Requirement days, a nine‑month curfew between 9pm and 5am, and £5,000 in costs.
Jack Stanbury received an 18‑month prison sentence, suspended for two years, 100 hours of unpaid work, a six‑month curfew between 9pm and 5am, and £1,000 in costs.
Both men were banned from keeping animals for life.
In mitigation, the court heard claims that they were remorseful and had distanced themselves from the hunting community.
Statement by Investigators
RSPCA investigator Michelle Hare described the content found on David’s phone as revealing the true scale of the cruelty. She spoke of shocking videos showing wildlife being brutally killed, heartbreaking trophy images, and messages about hunting with dogs, highlighting the suffering inflicted on both wild animals and the dogs used in the crimes.
Police Sergeant Ross Haybourne of Kent Police’s Rural Task Force emphasised the importance of collaboration with the RSPCA, confirming that Bear was seized and taken to safety and stating that the force remains committed to bringing rural offenders to justice.
At a Glance
Offenders: David Stanbury (born circa 1972), Jack Stanbury (born circa 1999)
Addresses: Denstead Lane, Chartham Hatch, Canterbury CT4 7NL; Vale View Road, Aylesham, Canterbury CT3 3DD
Previous Case: 2025 Forest of Dean boar case involving David Stanbury and Thomas Bishop (outcome unknown)
Victims: Deer, foxes, badgers, and multiple dogs including Bear
Key Evidence: Trophy videos, messages, images, and footage of dogs being mistreated
Investigation: Gloucestershire Police, Kent Police Rural Task Force, RSPCA Special Operations Unit
Outcome: Lifetime animal bans for both men
UKACF Commentary
What is most striking about David Stanbury is the gulf between the life he performs online and the cruelty he chooses in reality. His social media paints a picture of a blissful, upmarket lifestyle shared with his much younger wife at their Airbnb accommodation, Canterbury Cabin. But cruelty of this magnitude never stays neatly contained in a field or a forest. It speaks to a deeper absence of empathy, control and respect for life.
Men who revel in violence toward animals often wear extraordinarily convincing masks — charming, confident, wholesome, successful. Behind closed doors, those masks slip.
A man who laughs at suffering, who teaches cruelty to his own son, who treats life as disposable, does not transform into a gentle, safe partner at home.
Social media can present a fairy‑tale marriage, but the reality for women tied to men like this is often far more complex, shaped by power imbalance, image‑management and a version of him that exists only for the camera.
