Famed British-born crocodile expert Adam Britton was sentenced Thursday to more than 10 years and five months in prison in Australia for dozens of cases of sexually abusing dogs.
Brittonwho worked with outlets such as the BBC and National Geographic, pleaded guilty to 56 charges related to bestiality and animal cruelty, CBS News partner network BBC News reported.
Britton also admitted four counts of accessing child abuse material, according to the BBC.
Chief Justice Michael Grant warned the court that the details of Britton’s crimes were so “grotesque”, that when read out they could cause “nervous shock”.
As they were read out, some people rushed out of the room. Others watching from the gallery hurled insults at Britton or cried, the BBC reported.
Britton “was sadistic as a child towards animals, but I had repressed it. In the last few years I let it out again, and now I can’t stop. I don’t want to. :),” he wrote in a message in an online chat room which was presented in court.
He would manipulate his own pets, but “only mistreat other dogs… I have no emotional attachment to them, they are toys pure and simple. And [there are] much more where they came from,” he said, according to the BBC.
According to court documents seen by the BBC, in the 18 months before his arrest Britton tortured 42 dogs and killed 39 of them. He would find animals on the website Gumtree Australia, where many families often looked for new homes for their pets if they had to move.
Britton would then abuse the animals in a specially designed shipping container equipped with recording equipment on his property. He would upload the footage to the internet and was caught because in one clip – in which he tortured eight dogs, including seven puppies – an identifying dog leash was visible, and someone handed the clip over to police, the BBC reported.
Britton was arrested in April 2022. Police seized his recordings and found 15 files containing child abuse material.
“Once respected and valued, you are now a disgrace to the scientific community,” activist Natalie Carey said, addressing the zoologist directly outside court. “No one will ever look at you with admiration again.”