Tag Archives: London Borough of Sutton

Dogs, hare coursing, hunting with dogs, Organised Animal Crime, Pet Profiteering, poaching, Serial Animal Abusers, Traveller Animal Crimes, Wildlife Crime / Bloodsports

Cambridgeshire Hare Coursing gang: Thomas Connors, Patrick Rooney, Anthony Connors, James Bell

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CONVICTED (2021) | hare coursers Thomas Joseph Connors, born February 1978, of Carew Road, Wallington, Sutton SM6, Patrick Rooney, born c. 1985, of Croydon Road, Keston, Bromley BR2, Anthony Connors, born 31 January 1987, of Rutland Avenue, High Wycombe HP12, and James Raymond Bell, born October 2000, of Oaksview Park, 12 Murcott, Kidlington, Oxfordshire OX5 2RH

Thomas Connors, James Bell, Anthony Connors and Patrick Rooney all received fines and Criminal Behaviour Orders.
Thomas Connors, James Bell, Anthony Connors and Patrick Rooney all received fines and Criminal Behaviour Orders.

Officers from Cambridgeshire Constabulary’s Rural Crime Action Team (RCAT) caught the four men, who were also with a 12-year-old boy, driving through a field in Abbots Ripton, Cambridgeshire, looking for hares.

Hare courser Jim Bell from Kidlington, Oxfordshire
James Bell

On seeing the police, the group drove off through wildlife conservation areas and, after a short pursuit through the village, drove onto another field before stopping.

All four were interviewed and previous poaching convictions were revealed.

The vehicle was seized and the men were ordered to leave the county.

Hare courser Anthony Connors from High Wycombe
Anthony Connors

They all pleaded guilty to daytime trespass in pursuit of game (poaching) at Cambridge Magistrates’ Court on September 22, 2021, and were each handed a Criminal Behaviour Order (CBO) lasting three years.

The order prevents them from (while in Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex):

  • being on private agricultural or farm land, or any yards or working areas associated with that land, in or on any vehicle, or on foot whilst in possession of one or more sight hound or x-sight hound breed, unless the land owner’s written permission has been obtained beforehand
Hare coursers Jim Bell and Anthony Connors
Jim Bell (left) and Anthony Connors (right)

All four were also ordered to pay £178 in compensation to the owner of the fields and wildlife conservation areas.

In addition, Thomas Connors was fined £150, while Anthony Connors, Rooney and Bell were fined £200.

Cambs Times
East Anglian Daily Times

Additional Information

Jim Bell is a director of driveway company M&C Paving Ltd.

Dogs, Veterinary Malpractice

Wallington, Greater London: Zahra Rafiq

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CONVICTED (2019) | vet Dr Zahra Tahaneem Rafiq, born circa 1990, now of Wallington, London Borough of Sutton, and previously based in Huyton, Merseyside – stole two French bulldog puppies she had just delivered.

Dr Zara Rafiq was fired after she took a French bulldog puppy she was meant to be delivering.

Rafiq took the pup home with her after joking to a colleague that she planned to do it. The new-born dog died three days later at Rafiq’s home, which she admitted despite earlier saying it had faded in her car.

Rafiq had delivered the litter of six dogs, each worth up to £2,000, by Caesarian.

Instead of leaving them to recover with their mum Lila, she and a colleague, Oscar Perez Maillo, both took a puppy home with them.

The second dog was later returned still alive after another worker with VetsNow raised concerns.

Rafiq was fired by VetsNow in Huyton, Merseyside, and a misconduct hearing by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) found her to be ‘dishonest’. However, she was cleared to practise again after six months.

‘I’m fuming,’ owner Safinah Mhagrh told the Daily Record. ‘That vet stole my puppy. It was a terrible, heartless thing to do. She should not be allowed to practise.’

Safinah had taken her three-year-old French bulldog Lila to surgery after she went into labour in December 2017.

‘The first one was coming out legs first and got stuck. I thought Lila was going to die,’ she said. She was told to go home while vets operated.

When she came back, she was told there had been a litter of four but the stuck one hadn’t survived. Another of the puppies then died as it was too weak, but Lila bonded with the remaining two.

Ms Mhagrh said she had contacted police but the case hadn’t been taken further. A hearing heard Rafiq was remorseful and not motivated by financial gain.

Panel chair Ian Arundel said: ‘The committee concluded Dr Rafiq was very unlikely to pose a risk to animals in future.’

VetsNow refunded the £200 cost for the Caesarian.

Metro

Animal Abandonment, Dogs, Lifers

Carshalton, South London: Steven Laws and Elaine Churcher

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CONVICTED (2016) | Steven Laws, born 23 November 1982 and Elaine Churcher, born 20 April 1983, of Waltham Road, Carshalton, Surrey SM5 1PW – starved and neglected a young Dogue de Bordeaux

Steven Laws and Elaine Churcher

Steven Laws and Elaine Churcher, who are parents, failed to exercise their two-year-old dog, known as Ruby, or feed her properly. Police officers attending the couple’s home on an unrelated matter seized the very underweight dog and took her to a vet for urgent treatment.

Neglected dog Ruby was very underweight
Dogue de Bordeaux Ruby was extremely thin and had been badly effectively ignored by her cruel owners

Laws and Churcher admitted causing unnecessary suffering to an animal by failing to adequately feed her and failing to allow her to ‘exhibit normal behaviour patterns by lack of sufficient exercise’.

The offences took place between Sunday, 3 April and Sunday, 29 May 2016.

Ruby recovered from her ordeal

Given a proper diet, Ruby quickly put on a significant amount of weight and was made available for rehoming.

Sentencing
Laws – total fines and charges of £970; 100 hours of unpaid community work. Disqualified from keeping any animal indefinitely.
Churcher – total fines and charges of £370, one year’s community service. Disqualified from keeping an animal for 12 months (expired 2017).

Source: Sutton Voice (article removed)

Cats, Lifers, Violent and Sadistic Pet Abusers, Worst of the Worst

Sutton, South London: Lance Powell

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CONVICTED (2015) | Lance Paddington Powell, born 02/02/1952, of St Paul’s Close, Carshalton, Sutton SM5 1NR – beat a stray cat repeatedly with a broom before shoving him off 10ft balcony

Cat killer: Lance Paddington Powell from Carshalton, Sutton
Cat killer: Lance Paddington Powell

Angry that the cat had defecated on his balcony, Powell beat the animal several times with a broom before sending him crashing to the pavement 10 feet below.

The stray cat suffered a fractured skull and internal injuries and died the next day
The stray cat suffered a fractured skull and internal injuries and died the next day

The cat, who was a stray, fractured his skull and suffered internal injuries from which he died the next day.

Sentencing Powell, who came to Britain from Zimbabwe, the district judge said the cat had “suffered an agonising and lingering death”.

“This was an offence of cruelty of truly horrific proportions,” he told Powell.

“You acted with callous disregard for a living animal.

“The offence was so serious that only a custodial sentence is justified and I would be failing in my public duty if I did not impose one.”

After the case, RSPCA Inspector Lucy Chillery explained how Powell had taken his anger out on the stray cat who was being fed by neighbours.

“Mr Powell was angry he kept defecating on his balcony and so, when he came onto his balcony once more, he hit him again and again with a broom,” said the inspector.

“The violent attack was witnessed by two neighbours who screamed at him to stop beating the dazed and injured cat, who then fell around 10ft off his balcony and onto the pavement below.

“The neighbour rushed the cat to a local vet where he was given emergency treatment but, sadly, died overnight.

“A post mortem showed the cat had suffered from internal bleeding and a fractured skull.

”The RSPCA also praised the witnesses for bringing the case to light.

“This was a shocking and horrific case of cruelty against a defenceless animal,” added Inspector Chillery.

“I would like to thank the witnesses for their continued support without which we would not have been able to get the justice this poor cat deserved.”

Sentence: jailed for six weeks; £2,998 in costs. Banned from keeping animals for the rest of his life.

Evening Standard