CONVICTED (2021) | Sarah-Jane Belle, born 11 January 1990, of Simpson House, St Oswalds Place, Vauxhall, London SE11 5JF – failed to get treatment for her dog’s fist-sized mouth tumour, leaving him to slowly starve to death.
Sarah-Jane Belle
Mother-of-four Sarah Jane Belle was banned from keeping dogs for two years after she left her elderly dog, Rio, with a large tumour in his mouth which meant he struggled to eat.
Belle pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to the dog.
RSPCA inspector Natasha Wallis investigated after the charity received a call from the Blue Cross in October 2020.
Rio was taken to the animal charity on October 21 and rushed in for emergency care over concerns he wasn’t breathing.
The emaciated dog and had a very large mass in his mouth and sadly had already died by the time he was presented to the vet.
Inspector Harriet Dalliday who collected Rio’s body, said: “The dog was extremely thin with all ribs, spine and hip bones protruding.
“There was a large tumour stemming from the inside of the dog’s mouth and was approximately the size of my fist.”
Wimbledon Magistrates Court heard how the animal had a very large mass protruding from his mouth approximately 8cm by 5cm.
It prevented the closure of his mouth and a post-mortem showed he was suffering from bone cancer and was severely emaciated.
Rio’s ribs, spine, and pelvis protruded from his body and could visibly be seen from a distance.
On October 21 last year, when he was examined after his death, he weighed 9.8kg.
But before that on November 9, 2017, he had weighed 22kgs which meant he had lost more than half his body weight.
A vet report stated: “In my professional opinion, Rio would have had considerable trouble eating due to his inability to close his mouth property and apprehend food due to the size of the mass.
“Rio’s emaciated appearance suggests chronic malnourishment over the past few months.
“I fail to believe Rio had been eating normally the night prior to his presentation as suggested by the owner.
“In my opinion, Rio’s owner failed to seek veterinary attention for his severe weight loss, which would have been obvious, and as a result failed to protect him from hunger and thirst.”
Sentencing: 12-month community order with 90 hours of unpaid work; £195 in costs and charges. Banned from owning dogs for two years (expired June 2023).
CONVICTED (2021) | Adam Ahmed Hasani, born 4 January 1990, of Napier Court, Flamstead End Road, Cheshunt, Waltham Cross EN8 0JD – killed a kitten and “seriously injured” a second.
Kitten Biscuit was badly beaten by her sadistic owner but recovered in the RSPCA’s care Another cat named Simba very sadly died from his injuries
Former airline steward and waiter Hasani inflicted “blunt force trauma” upon two kittens at a property near Stratford, causing multiple injuries that left vets with no choice but to euthanize one.
On June 8 , 2020, Hasani took his tabby kitten “Simba” to Blue Cross Animal Hospital in Pimlico with a suspected broken jaw.
Vets spoke to Hasani about about how the injury had taken place, to which he responded Simba had fallen off some cupboards. The kitten was discharged two days later.
However, one week later, Hasani again contacted Blue Cross as the kitten had sustained another injury, claiming this time he had hit his head on the cooker.
Hasani brought the kitten in later that day, where he was examined by a vet and found with head injuries.
The vet believed the injuries were suspicious, and reported the incident to the RSPCA due to their nature. Simba was later put down down due to the severity of his injuries.
On October 9, a second male kitten belonging to Hasani named “Biscuit” was taken to the same hospital to be treated for injuries.
After being asked what had happened, Hasani said he had been attempting to bath the ginger and white kitten after she had excreted on his bed.
He explained that the kitten had jumped out the bath and he had tried to get her back into the water.
The vet found the kitten had suffered a dislocated sternum and multiple other injuries believed to have been sustained in the same incident. Again the injuries were reported to the RSPCA.
Hasani was detained and, in interview, said that any injury caused to the kittens was “not done on purpose or maliciously”.
The former airline steward and waiter did, however, accept that he “should have known better”.
Hasani pleaded guilty to two counts of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal.
In mitigation, the court heard Hasani had been “emotionally tortured” and this was “not some sadistic infliction of pain”.
However, magistrates said he had carried out “a series of offences against two defenceless animals” and his actions passed the custody threshold.
Sentencing: 16 weeks in prison. Unspecified ban on owning animals.
CONVICTED (2019) | Christopher Bloy, born c. 1992, and partner Heather Wray, born c. 1993, both of Patrick Street, Grimsby DN32 – banned from keeping animals after their extremely malnourished German Shepherd had to be put down
Neglectful Christopher Bloy and mother-of-two Heather Wray admitted causing unnecessary suffering to German Shepherd Cassie by failing to investigate the cause of her poor body condition and weight loss.
Cassie, who was no more than five years old, was rushed to the Blue Cross animal hospital but was put to sleep the same day.
Rachel Taylor, prosecuting for the RSPCA, told the court that the emaciated dog weighed only 12kg when the usual weight for a dog of her size and breed is between 30kg and 35kg.
“There was a real failure to investigate why this dog weighed such a low weight of 12kg when it was presented in such a condition that it had to be euthanised,” said Miss Taylor.
Ironically, there was another dog at the couple’s house but that one had a normal weight and had received food.
“Cassie was not receiving food,” said Miss Taylor. “Either the other dog was eating it or there was no food put down.
“The charge is failing to address the loss of weight rather than a deliberate act of cruelty.
“I can’t say that this is a deliberate case of failing to feed. Certainly, the dog was not sufficiently fed.”
The prosecution did not accept that the dog had an underlying condition because the couple seemed to have been advised by a vet in 2016 that follow-up appointments would be needed. Her weight then was only 18kg.
These appointments were never kept, however, and attempts by the veterinary surgery to make contact were unsuccessful.
A post-mortem suggested that there was no underlying reason for the weight loss.
Craig Davy, mitigating, said the other dog was perfectly healthy but was treated in a similar way to Cassie and they claimed that the second dog might have taken some of Cassie’s food.
“They noticed the weight of Cassie declining in a period of a few weeks,” said Mr Davy.
“They should have done more over that period of time. Both were distressed by the fact that Cassie had to be put down.”
The court heard that Bloy claimed because he worked away 60 to 70 hours a week, he did not notice the dog had lost weight. She used to play around in the garden and the first time he realised there was a problem was when the dog collapsed.
Wray had owned Cassie since she was a puppy but two years ago, her behaviour changed and she started jumping at shadows and running around obsessively.
The pair said they sought help and tried to sort out the problems but the dog would not eat when she was watched.
Wray admitted that she should have sought advice a lot earlier and she regretted that.
A woman who was in court supporting the couple had offered to provide a new home for the other dog.
Heather Wray had owned Cassie since she was a puppy
District judge Daniel Curtis told the couple: “Unfortunately, through your neglect, this dog had to be euthanised on the day that it appeared in front of a veterinary surgeon, who took the view, having examined it, that it was extremely malnourished and had been neglected.
“During that period, you did not do enough to save that dog. You should have looked after it. It’s an obligation that you have.
“The dog was emaciated in 2016. It was even worse when you presented it at the vet’s in 2018.”
The RSPCA will decide whether the supporter who was in court is a suitable person to have care of the other dog.
After the hearing, the woman was among angry supporters of Bloy and Wray who confronted a Grimsby Live photographer, hurling loud abuse and waving their arms around to try to prevent pictures of the defendants being taken as they left court.
Sentencing | Bloy was given 80 hours’ unpaid work and Wray was given five days’ rehabilitation. Total of £585 costs and charges each. 10-year ban on keeping animals with no right of appeal for five years (expires April 2029).
CONVICTED (2019) | David Morris, born c. 1968, and Susan Morris, born c. 1965, both of Southland Court, Grimsby DN37 9LL – left their flea-riddled Shih-Tzu dog to suffer with matted fur, skin and eye problems
Convicted dog abusers Susan Morris and husband David Morris of Grimsby, Lincolnshire
David and Susan Morris denied three offences of causing unnecessary suffering to the nine-year-old male dog, named Fifi, but were convicted after a trial.
Fifi was riddled with fleas and had badly matted fur as well as skin and eye problems.
Fifi
The court heard that matting would have stopped him from being able to scratch properly and he would have been in a lot of pain. It was estimated that he had had fleas for two years.
The couple said they could not afford the cost of veterinary treatment so simply left the dog to suffer.
Neglected Shih-Tzu Fifi had many ailments including fleas, infected skin, a dry eye problem and badly matted fur
In a tragic twist, Fifi later had to be put down due to another problem.
Gordon Holt, prosecuting for the RSPCA, told Grimsby magistrates that an inspector visited the couple’s home on January 27, 2018, and examined Fifi.
Mr Holt said: “There was clear evidence that there was suffering to this animal and it had been going on for some time.”
Fifi was taken to the Blue Cross Animal Hospital in Grimsby , where a vet clipped him “from head to toe” to get rid of the matting.
“The vet believed Fifi had been caused unnecessary suffering,” said Mr Holt.
The vet said: “I have never seen a flea infection that was so bad. Fleas were visible on every part of his body.”
Sadly Fifi had to be put down last year following problems with his nervous system
Sadly, Fifi put down six months later because of a suspected central nervous problem.
David Morris later said of the dog: “I rescued him off the street. I have had him six or seven years.
“I feel we have rescued Fifi from certain death on the day I rescued him.
“I have not been cruel but possibly I have been stupid. I am bereft if my dog has suffered.”
Susan Morris claimed she did not notice the skin and eye conditions but bathed the dog sometimes for fleas.
Defence barrister Hywel Davies claimed: “There were no signs of discomfort or suffering. They were not to know.
“Nothing there warrants a trip to the vet’s.”
David Morris, a trained nurse, told the court that he found the stray dog on the streets.
Part of the reason he did not alert a vet was that he feared that Fifi would turn out to be microchipped and “would be taken back to that awful place” where he believed the dog had been cruelly treated.
He claimed that he did not see any eye or skin problems.
“I never noticed any problems,” he said.
“I didn’t think it was causing him any discomfort. It didn’t seem to bother him.
“We knew there were fleas. We must have used every flea shampoo, flea powder that was available.
“If a new flea product came out, we used it. It seemed to reduce them to some extent.
“He didn’t seem to be bothered by having them. He didn’t whine and didn’t scratch unduly.
“He just seemed a happy little dog.”
There was no cause for them to have concern about the dog suffering at any time.
“If he had, he would have been taken to a vet immediately,” claimed Morris.
“I didn’t think he was suffering in any way.”
Susan Morris told the court: “He was just fine. I used to give him baths.
“I saw a few fleas on him but I was treating it, sometimes two, three times a week. It got better.
“He was just like a normal dog. He wasn’t suffering at all.”
Sentencing | David Morris: 12-month community order with 100 hours of unpaid work. Susan Morris: electronic curfew for 20 weeks Total of £335 costs and charges each Both were banned indefinitely from keeping animals
CONVICTED (2016) | Sara Louise Loche, born 06/08/1978, and husband Richard Loche, born 12/11/1969, of Eleanor St, Grimsby DN32 8AL- let their German Shepherd cross become so emaciated she collapsed and had to be put to sleep
Sara and Richard Loche from Grimsby and Queenie the dog they starved to death
Queenie weighed only 7.5 kilos – half the weight she should have been.
RSPCA Inspector Stuart Wainwright said he was called in to investigate after staff at Blue Cross Animal Hospital on Nelson Street raised the alarm when Queenie, a tan and black cross-breed female, was brought to the hospital in a collapsed state.
He told the court the dog was in a comatose state and was put down.
“It was terribly emaciated – the worst I have ever seen,” he said.
He interviewed the owners Richard and Sara Loche later, who claimed they had fed the dog two or three meals each day.
Chief vet at The Blue Cross Animal Hospital, Susan Knox said the dog had collapsed and was unable to stand.
She said the dog’s heart rate was very slow and her ribs were protruding, along with shoulder bones, spine and hip bones. The vet described the wasting of muscles and severe loss of fat around the dog’s organs.
She said: “It showed signs that the dog’s needs had not been met and a thoroughly poorly-looking dog.”
She confirmed there had been no underlying illness.
Queenie was put down with the owner’s consent.
Humberside Police officers attended and the RSPCA conducted an investigation into the suffering of the dog.
After the hearing, Inspector Wainwright described Queenie as being “in the worst condition I have ever seen a dog alive. I have only seen them like that when dead”.
Sentence: Sara Loche – 20 weeks in prison; banned from keeping animals for life; Richard Loche – 12-month community order; 10-year ban on keeping all pets.
CONVICTED (2015) | Elizabeth Lamb, aka Lisa Cole, born 7 June 1965, previously of Bransgore, Hampshire, but confirmed in October 2022 to be living in Aylesbury Road, Bournemouth BH1 4HP – abandoned a starving dog.
Elizabeth Lamb aka Lisa Cole.
Elizabeth Lamb pleaded guilty to failing to protect her lurcher Lucy, renamed Hettie, from suffering by not investigating the cause of her weight loss. She also pleaded guilty to failing to provide adequate flea treatment which caused a skin condition.
Lamb starved lurcher Hettie over months then abandoned her.
Vets who examined Hettie believed that she had not been allowed access to sufficient food over a period of many weeks if not months.
Inspector Bailey said: “Hettie, was without doubt one of the skinniest dogs I have dealt with in this job.
“She was handed to the local dog warden after having allegedly been found wandering in woodland in Bransgore in February this year.
“Weighing just 9.1kg on admission to the kennels, she was grossly underweight, emaciated and skeletal. She was literally just skin and bone.
“I remember trying to comfort her but when gently stroking her body and my hand was literally getting caught on her prominent bones. She looked so pitiful and sad. I am just so glad she was rescued in time.”
He added: “Thankfully when I saw Hettie again just over a month later, although still not quite at her optimum weight, at 13.7kg she was already a transformed dog. All she had needed was some good food and some flea treatment.
“Thanks to the excellent care from Blue Cross in Southampton. Her fur was growing back and she had a good coverage of body fat and muscle tone developing.
“She was and still is a beautiful, gentle, kind-natured dog and I’m delighted to hear she was adopted so quickly.”
Sentencing | 12-month conditional discharge; £115 in costs and victim surcharge. Five-year ban on keeping all animals (expired 2020).
CONVICTED (2013) | Frederick McHugh, born 1931 (now deceased), his daughter Angela Russell, born c. 1971, her son Robert Russell, born 26/04/1988, and daughters Kirsty Russell, born 18/07/1992, and Louise Russell, born 14/11/1990, all previously of Faringdon Road, Abingdon OX13 5HN and niece Abigail McHugh of Pendennis Road, Swindon SN5 8QD – ran a bogus animal rescue where dozens of animals were starved, neglected and kept in squalor
RSPCA inspectors rescued 29 dogs, 13 horses and a number of chickens, goats, cats, and ducks during a raid on Crunchy’s Animal Rescue in January 2012.
Officials described conditions at the centre, based in in Faringdon Road, Longworth, near Abingdon, as “some of the worst they had ever seen”.
Dogs, cats, rabbits, ponies and other animals lived in filthy kennels covered in their own urine and faeces, with inadequate bedding, food and water.
Some animals were found in areas containing rubbish, bundles of barbed wire, metal frames from burned mattresses and rusting cars.
A number of the animals had skin conditions which had not been treated.
A shih-tzu dog with an eye condition, a duck and a turkey were in such a bad condition that they had to be put down.
In April 2013 a total of eight people involved with the sanctuary — Angela Russell, her father Fred, her son Robert Russell, her daughters Kirsty and Louise, her brother Peter, niece Abigail McHugh and Angela’s carer, Daniel Bunyan went on trial at Bicester Magistrates Court.
Angela Russell and son, Robert Russell, pictured outside court
All bar Peter Russell and Daniel Bunyan were convicted of 16 offences of cruelty including failing to provide adequate nutrition, adequate parasitic control and provision of veterinary care.
When welfare officers from the RSPCA, World Horse Welfare and the Blue Cross visited the sanctuary between December 2011 and January 2012, they discovered lice-covered horses left to forage in muddy fields littered with junk and sharp objects, and various rabbits, dogs and goats left in cramped conditions, covered in faeces and without food and water.
Some of the animals had been entrusted to the rescue centre temporarily by their owners.
Much loved pet Winston was found living in squalor at the Russell family’s so-called animal sanctuary
Sandra Luker trusted Crunchy’s with four golden retrievers, two cats and a rabbit in November 2011 – but only one dog and her cat were ever returned.
There were also allegations of animal exploitation for financial gain with the judge noting “a commercial element to the operation”. The charity received generous donations from the public but, in the judge’s view, that money had not gone towards looking after the animals. In addition the charity was found to have sold puppies, kittens and rabbits on the internet with Louise Russell having an instrumental role here.
Jonathan Coode, prosecuting for the RSPCA, had told the court: ‘It is our case that for years none of the defendants did anything to improve the conditions and when the RSPCA finally stepped in, some of the worst conditions that most of the witnesses have ever experienced were discovered.
‘One of the most shocking aspects of this case is a dog cowering in a cage. In front of it is effectively a termite mound, almost taller than it, of piled-up faeces.’
He said an area where four puppies were found living among rubbish in a caravan had ‘the most appalling stench’ of faeces and urine.
A horse found lying dead under an old pick-up truck roof had died of Yew tree poisoning and also had bits of tarpaulin and other rubbish in its stomach.
The RSPCA suspected the Russells had tried to hide it and were planning to secretly bury it.
The rescue centre was set up in 2006 and had four trustees. Concerns were first raised about the charity in 2008 and the RSPCA had issued several warnings about the standards of care of the animals
Sentencing Angela Russell, district Judge Tim Pattinson said he believed her to be the “prime mover” in the neglect.
He said: “There is no way an animal lover could allow such profound neglect of this type.”
“Crunchy’s was an animal disaster, a sea of mud and faeces containing shocking and dangerous hazards.
“In short, it was a rescue centre from which animals needed to be rescued.”
Judge Pattinson added: “The photos and videos shown during this case will be remembered by everyone who saw them for a very long time. In particular, the horses crippled by overgrown hooves and the horses trying to eat from a wheelie bin.
“All of you inflicted this suffering in the name of this charity – a rescue centre, a sanctuary – but nothing could be further from the truth than that of what was going on at Crunchy’s.”
RSPCA deputy chief inspector Kirsty Withnall investigated the case.
“What we found at Faringdon Road were filthy, disgusting conditions where animals were being kept amongst all sorts of hazardous items without food and water,” she said. “We have a duty to protect animals from this sort of neglect and we hope that the sentence will help to do this.
“Many of these animals had been entrusted to the care of the defendants by loving owners. Instead of the care promised, the animals were left in dirty, broken down buildings without vet treatment where it was needed or access to basic care.”
Sentencing |
Angela and Fred Russell were both sentenced to 26 weeks in prison and a life ban on keeping animals, with Mr Russell’s sentence suspended for 18 months in light of his age. He was also ordered to pay £1,000 costs.
Robert Russell was sentenced to immediate imprisonment for 18 weeks and was banned from owning, keeping, dealing, transporting or participating in keeping of animals for 10 years (expires July 2023).
Kirsty Russell received a curfew order and £1,000 fine,
Louise Russell received a 12-week suspended prison sentence, a curfew order and a £1,000 fine. Both sisters have been banned from keeping animals for 10 years.
Abigail McHugh was sentenced to 150 hours of community service and ordered to pay £1000 in costs.
Frederick Russell is deceased. Robert Russell now lives in Fore Street, Bugle, St Austell, Cornwall PL26 8PB with a partner and their twins. Angela Russell’s whereabouts are unknown.
#MostEvil | Amersham horse trader James John Gray (05/09/1963), wife Julie Cordelia Gray (24/05/1967) and daughters Jodie June Gray (12/09/1982) and Cordelia Gray (29/05/1988) and James Gray junior (23/01/1993) – left more than 100 horses, ponies and donkeys to starve among the rotting carcasses of other animals
Clockwise from top left: James Gray Sr, Julie Gray, Cordelia Gray, Jodie Gray, court protestors, James Gray Jr
In a case veterinary expert witness described as the worst case of animal cruelty they had ever seen, 31 equines were found dead at Spindle Farm, Chalk Lane, Hyde Heath, Amersham. Some 111 other horses, ponies and donkeys were rescued.
The massive rescue was co-ordinated by Thames Valley Police, Trading Standards and the RSPCA with help from the Horse Trust, the International League for the Protection of Horses (ILPH), Redwings Horse Sanctuary and the Blue Cross
James Gray Sr is banned for life from keeping equine animals
Hooves and body parts of horses that had been left to die were scattered around and a grotesque mound made up of bones and skulls was discovered.
The horror scene was uncovered when RSPCA inspectors were called to the farm, where a horse-trading business run by the Gray family was based.
James Gray Jr
There were 140 animals at the farm and many were left with little food or dry bedding, were crammed into pens and ankle-deep in their own faeces.
Jodie Gray, aka Jodie Keet, with son Tommy Gray
In total 115 animals, some severely emaciated, had to be rescued and removed from the farm during a huge operation in January 2009.
Robert Seabrook QC told the court how two RSPCA inspectors visiting the farm in January 2008 were confronted with a “grotesque and distressing state of affairs”.
He said a number of horses were discovered in “disgusting pens”, some were tethered individually and others were loose in the paddocks.
The most extraordinary aspect he said was that many horses were next to carcasses in varying states of decomposition and the smell of rotting flesh was “over-powering”.
He added: “A number of animals that were found had plainly been dead for a number of days and as it turns out, some for many months.”
Julie Gray
The court heard in one pen three severed hooves were found alongside the bodies of two other horses.
James Gray Sr was convicted of nine charges of causing unnecessary suffering to animals and two charges of failing to protect animals from pain, injury, suffering and disease.
His son James Gray Jr was convicted of identical charges although two were later overturned on appeal.
Gray’s wife, Julie, and daughters Cordelia and Jodie were found guilty of the two charges of failing to protect the animals.
No member of the family showed any sign of emotion as the judge passed sentence.
RSPCA inspector Kirsty Hampton described the conditions the horses were kept in as “grotesque”.
Speaking after the sentencing, Hampton said: “The RSPCA is pleased the district judge has recognised the extent of the cruelty, neglect and the suffering endured by the animals in this case.
“We see the disqualifications from keeping horses as an effective measure to prevent animals suffering in future.”
Sentencing: James Gray Sr was sentenced to six months in prison and banned from keeping horses, ponies and donkeys for life. He was also ordered to pay £400,000. Gray was given a further two months after absconding from court. Two of Gray’s convictions were overturned in 2010, but Gray was ordered to pay £600,000 towards the RSPCA’s legal costs and faced financial ruin. A later appeal against what Gray claimed were disproportionate legal costs was rejected.
James Gray Junior was given an 18-month supervision order. He was banned from keeping equines for 10 years with right of appeal after five (ban expired June 2019).
Julie, Jodie and Cordelia Gray were each given 150 hours of community service. They were also banned from keeping equines for 10 years, with the right of appeal after five (bans expired June 2019).
Julie Gray was ordered to pay £750 in costs, and Cordelia Gray and Jodie Gray £500 each.
James Gray and Cordelia Gray, 57 Narcot Road, Chalfont St Giles HP8 4DF Julie Cordelia Gray, 15 Weller Road, Amersham HP6 6LQ James Gray Jr, Chalk Hill Farm, Chalk Lane, Hyde Heath, Amersham HP6 5SA Jodie June Gray (also known as Jodie Keet), 14 Middle Meadow, Chalfont St Giles HP8 4QS
Update September 2021
The Bucks Free Press reported that James Gray was let off £200,000-worth of fines due to bankruptcy.
Gray was ordered to pay more than £1million in fines and court costs and has served jail time since he was convicted of multiple animal welfare offences in 2008.
He attempted to appeal the convictions at London’s High Court in 2013, but although two of his 11 original convictions were overturned, he was ultimately unsuccessful and had another £200,000 added to his legal bill.
In August 2021, Gray, of 57 Narcot Road in Chalfont St Giles, had £223,453-worth of fines written off.
Documents attached to the court listing state that the amount was remitted due to Gray being bankrupt, having served prison time, and the RSPCA refusing the money.
In 2014, Gray was hauled back before the courts and was jailed for four-and-a-half years after he fleeced pensioners out of thousands of pounds for cowboy building works.
In an attempt to raise funds to pay off his fines and court costs, Gray conned an 88-year-old former British Library academic out of £20,000 for work which experts valued at just £150.
He drained £18,000 out of another 80-year-old victim’s account, leaving him with just £300 after repeatedly demanding money from him. This victim died just months after the money was found to be missing.
Gray, who had done this work under the fake name ‘Joseph De Paula’, admitted two counts of fraud by false representation before he was sentenced at Swindon Crown Court.
We collate data on animal cruelty convictions in the UK
