Horse Trader in Wales jailed for 8 months and banned for 5 years

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matthew88

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Just read this. To think, this guy was responsible for so many horses.

Literally quite unbelievable.
A horse trader has been jailed for eight months and banned from keeping horses for five years after being found guilty of 57 animal welfare and cruelty charges.

Tom Price, 48, from Wick in the Vale of Glamorgan, caused unnecessary suffering to 18 horses and received a six month sentence at Cardiff Magistrates' Court.

It will run concurrently with an eight month sentence he received for a breach of an anti-social behaviour order.

The RSPCA believe he has 2,500 horses.

The horses were found at five locations in south Wales and the court heard 12 animals had been "left to die" in a Bridgend barn.

Price's 26-year-old son, Thomas Hope Price, was also found guilty in June.

'Shocking and horrendous'

The court was told the conditions Price and his son kept horses in almost beggared belief
On Friday, district judge at Cardiff Magistrates' Court Bodfan Jenkins ordered the pair to pay £43,000 each in court costs.

It comes after the RSPCA found evidence of neglect and unnecessary suffering to horses in five locations across Bridgend and the Vale of Glamorgan.

Mr Jenkins said both men had both been involved in a large and wealthy concern breeding gypsy cobs and the conditions they were kept in were shocking and horrendous" and almost beggared belief.

Thomas Hope Price received a shorter sentence of 23 weeks because he had pleaded guilty to the offences before the trial.

The five year disqualification for keeping horses was suspended for six months to give the Prices and their company, Glamorgan Horse Traders, time to sell or dispose of their stock.

'Powerless'
Continue reading the main story
“
Start Quote

Landowners were powerless to deal with your fly grazing activities and they were virtually intimidated by you”

District Judge John Charles
Sentencing Price
Speaking after the case, the RSPCA said it did not have the facilities to re-home the huge numbers of horses involved and was looking for a partnership between local authorities and the Welsh government to address the problem.

Price was sentenced separately for the breach of the Asbo between the 6 and 22 December, 2012 by District Judge John Charles.

He was fined £1,000 in costs and the judge told him: "There was a harassment of landowners targeted by you. You've not shown a shred of respect for anybody and not shown any remorse.

"Landowners were powerless to deal with your fly-grazing activities and they were virtually intimidated by you."

After sentencing, Acting Supt Marc Lamerton from South Wales Police said he hoped the sentence would bring an end to the illegal practice of fly-grazing and Asbo breaches are taken seriously.

Principal trading standards officer for the Vale of Glamorgan Council Christina Roberts-Kinsey said: "His actions have caused a great deal of suffering to his horses. But in allowing the horses to fly-graze, straying onto public roads and residential areas, he could also have risked the safety of the public."

She said Price had repeatedly denied ownership of the horses and failed to cooperate with the council's requests.

Ms Roberts-Kinsey added: "Despite the terms of the Asbo, Tom Price has continued with his illegal practices and has breached the order several times."
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Source; Toca City
 
He'll probably go on as he has done. Maybe some will have ownership transferred (does he have a large family?) but I can't see him selling 2500 horses in the current market. And unless he gets a knackerman in, there's no abattoir that could take them.
As ever, it's the horses who suffer.
 
suestowford said:
He'll probably go on as he has done. Maybe some will have ownership transferred (does he have a large family?) but I can't see him selling 2500 horses in the current market. And unless he gets a knackerman in, there's no abattoir that could take them.
As ever, it's the horses who suffer.
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The animals are no longer his to sell.
 
amymay said:
The animals are no longer his to sell.
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Quote from above.......
"The five year disqualification for keeping horses was suspended for six months to give the Prices and their company, Glamorgan Horse Traders, time to sell or dispose of their stock."

Of course I suspect any relatives will take most of them :(
 
"Great Result Get Real" why not a life time BAN they will continue just as before Horse "Ownership" transferred to another member of the Family and the circle will continue POOR BLOO** HORSES Just Like the Causeway Horses, the Suffering will continue.

Fly Grazing Needs To Be Made ILLEGAL in Law not just a Civil Matter. Its time to get tough with this matter and its Perpertraters.
 
Hairy Old Cob said:
"Great Result Get Real" why not a life time BAN they will continue just as before Horse "Ownership" transferred to another member of the Family and the circle will continue POOR BLOO** HORSES Just Like the Causeway Horses, the Suffering will continue.

Fly Grazing Needs To Be Made ILLEGAL in Law not just a Civil Matter. Its time to get tough with this matter and its Perpertraters.
Click to expand...

Couldn't agree more HoC. Grazing a horse on land without permission of the landowner should be a criminal offence and just like having no car tax results in seizure of the car no ifs or buts, (which they had to do as the problem was out of control) , fly grazing should result in immediate seizure of the horses.

For heavens sake, they treat horses as chattel possessions when they are stolen from us, well here's the flip side, treat them like chattels eg cars when they are used for unlawful purposes. NB it would require infrastructure of 'green yards' with a lot of security and secrecy as the people who are involved in this kind of thing also have a habit of turning up en masse and sometimes armed to forcibly seize animals back.
 
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