Men who repeatedly punched sheep before blowing it up with fireworks jailed

"Leighton Ashby, 22, and Oakley Hollands, 20, filmed the 30-minute attack on a mobile phone and kept the sheep's ear tag as a token, which was later hidden inside a Monster energy can and discovered inside a communal toilet. The duo, who were enrolled at Plumpton Agricultural College, pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal and with Ashby sentenced to two years behind bars and Hollands receiving a 20-month sentence at a youth offender institution."

"Hove Trial Centre heard that the two defendants had invited two of their fellow students to see a dead badger on the evening of 2 November 2023, with Hollands telling the group that he had been drinking alcohol while behind the wheel. Upon arriving at a field near Ditchling Beacon, the group walked along a public footpath before Ashby and Hollands began to chase a sheep, eventually pinning it to the ground."

"Shortly afterwards, Ashby began swinging it from side to side and kicked the sheep around five times to its head and torso. When the other witnesses requested to leave and asked for the car keys, Hollands refused and began to film the incident on his mobile phone. At one point, the sheep appeared unable to stand due to the blows to its head, with Hollands heard shouting go on, kill it, kill it, kill it while laughing in the background."

"Explosive devices were then inserted into the mouth and anus of the animal, leaving it severely mutilated with fatal injuries. Animal rights campaigner Lorraine Stokes outside the court with fellow protesters (The Independent) After the group returned to the college, Ashby was heard to tell Hollands we need to wait a couple of weeks before we do that again. The duo were reported to the police after the female witness requested that Hollands send her the videos, and it was subsequently reported to college staff."

Two students from Plumpton Agricultural College, Leighton Ashby (22) and Oakley Hollands (20), filmed a 30-minute attack in which they chased, pinned, beat and mutilated a sheep. The attackers inserted explosive devices into the animal's mouth and anus, causing fatal injuries, and hid the sheep's ear tag inside a Monster energy can. The incident occurred near Ditchling Beacon on 2 November 2023 after the pair invited fellow students to see a dead badger. Ashby received a two-year prison sentence and Hollands a 20-month sentence at a youth offender institution after pleading guilty.

Read at www.independent.co.uk