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Aussie Jailed For Bashing Nine Puppies With Brick

  • 04/05/2015
puppy-basher-nathan-thompson.jpg

A man who bashed and killed nine puppies in the NSW Hunter Valley has been sentenced to a minimum of a year in jail.

Nathan Thompson, 25, pleaded guilty to about a dozen animal cruelty charges after he bludgeoned the puppies to death in March in bushland at Kurri Kurri, north-west of Newcastle.

In sentencing him at Newcastle Local Court, Magistrate Robert Stone described Thompson's actions as senseless, brutal, cold-hearted and callous.

He said Thompson had "no insight into the enormity of his actions" and an "appalling lack of empathy for the plight of each animal".

Thompson was sentenced to 18 months' jail, to serve a minimum of 12 months.

After the sentence was handed down, Thompson wiped his eyes and said to his mother and his partner: "I love you".

The RSPCA's David O'Shannessy said the sentence would act as a deterrent for others in the community.

Earlier, as Thompson entered the court for the sentencing hearing, campaigners outside yelled out "no excuse for animal abuse".

Inside, the prosecution argued "you'd have to be deaf and blind" not to hear the puppies yelping and see them gasping for air during the attack that led to their deaths.

Thompson's lawyer told the court his client was "not in a normal frame of mind" at the time, because he had taken ice and had not slept for three days - but the magistrate did not accept that evidence.

The court had previously heard Thompson was aware of humane alternatives, such as surrendering the dogs to the RSPCA, but chose to kill them himself.

Police documents said Thompson thought about taking the animals to an RSPCA shelter near Maitland but decided not to because he did not have enough fuel in his car.

A witness was walking his own dogs when he heard yelping and saw Thompson striking the puppies with a brick.

Thompson had already been banned from animal ownership for life.

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