Man repeatedly punches dog before throwing it into boot of car, sentenced after dashcam video triggers outrage
A Welsh man who was arrested and charged after he was filmed on a dash-cam brutally beating his dog and throwing it into the boot of his car has been found guilty and sentenced to unpaid work. Gregory Phillips, 40, had shocked bystanders and onlookers when he was seen violently handling and striking the animal on Pentre Street on March 31, according to North Wales Live. In footage released by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSCPA), people can be heard honking their car horns and shouting at him to stop as he attacked the dog outside a local convenience store. At one point, the dog, believed to be a cocker spaniel, jumped out of his car as he went load a crate of beer into his back seat. This appeared to anger Phillips further, and he responded by picking up the dog, punching it several times, and throwing him into the boot of the car with the other dogs. After throwing the dog in, he continues to punch and hit it.
Phillips, of Ynyslas Crescent, Glynneath, pleaded guilty at Swansea Magistrates' Court to the Animal Welfare Act offense and was sentenced to a 12-month community order and 150 hours of unpaid work. He was also ordered to pay $398 in costs and a $119 victim surcharge. Speaking about the case in court, RSPCA inspector Keith Hogben said the beating had "shocked" the people in the country and that they were thankful they were able to identify the culprit and bring him to justice.
"In broad daylight and with people all around, this poor dog was beaten by his owner, who clearly had no regard for his legal responsibilities towards his animal," he said. "Fortunately, the dashcam footage helped us to identify this individual and ensure we could take action. "Clearly, this is no way to treat an animal, and thankfully, the vast majority of people across south Wales and beyond will be shocked by this footage, and the beating this poor cocker spaniel was subjected to."
MEA WorldWide (MEAWW) previously reported on another case of animal abuse where a man was banned from keeping pets after he overfed his two Staffordshire Bull Terriers to the point they became so obese they were "barrel-shaped" and their legs buckled because of their size.
Martin Harrison, 58, had bought the two dogs, Lucy and Brucie, in 2014, and regularly fed them cheese, rice pudding, and cakes which resulted in them dramatically putting on weight. The RSCPA was alerted to their condition after receiving a tip from a member of the public and had given him tips on how to help them lose weight after an initial visit.
But during subsequent visits, it became apparent that Harrison was not following their advice and after the organization received an independent vet's report expressing concerns about their "suffering," both dogs were seized under the Animal Welfare Act of 2006.
He was eventually found guilty of two counts of causing unnecessary suffering to his pets by not providing them with a healthy diet and one count of failing to provide veterinary care, and had the dogs taken away from him.