Farmer condemns 'brutal' killing of stolen sheep

A farmer who claims one of his sheep was butchered inside a home on a Grimsby estate has described the incident as "brutally cruel".

Richard Leeson, whose farm is at Caistor in Lincolnshire, said the ewe was stolen on Good Friday after giving birth.

He said the suspected culprits were later caught on CCTV dragging the animal from a vehicle into the property.

The farmer said the footage showed the animal being carried in alive, but Lincolnshire Police said it was "really hard to say".

The CCTV was shared on social media, with initial speculation it could be a human body being moved.

Det Con Aaron Flint, of Lincolnshire Police's wildlife crime unit, said Humberside Police, which covers Grimsby, "took it very seriously" and "responded really quickly".

"They found that, instead of being a human body, [it] was the body of a sheep," he said.

Mr Leeson was notified after he was traced through a tag on the animal's ear.

He said he was asked to collect the ewe's body from a police station in Brigg, with the case being passed back to Lincolnshire Police as the theft had taken place in the county.

Judging by the condition of the body, the animal would have endured "a very brutal death", Mr Leeson said.

Lincolnshire Police said they were investigating the incident as theft and handling stolen goods, but no arrests had yet been made.

Mr Leeson said whoever was responsible should also be charged with animal cruelty offences.

Commenting on the video, Mr Leeson said: "Just as they are entering the house she moves her head and her eye glints. She was definitely alive."

"The person pinned it down and slit its throat without any stunning," he said, adding: "It's awful to think about."

"In terms of cruelty, you can't get any worse. It bled to death. The pain caused doesn't bear thinking about. It is very brutal," he added.

According to figures from insurance firm NFU Mutual, £2.7m worth of livestock was stolen across the UK in 2023 - up from £2.2m in 2020.

Mr Leeson said farmers "just have to accept" rural crime, but this incident had been particularly difficult.

"There is a lamb motherless. It is coping and being given milk," he added.

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