A vet involved in a puppy-farming plot which saw unwitting dog lovers conned out of £2.5 million has been jailed.
Daniel Doherty was a ‘hard-working’ vet with two successful clinics, who clients praised for his devotion to animals.
But he offered his services to a gang passing off farmed puppies, which were often seriously ill and not socialised, to customers who believed they were buying dogs that had been lovingly reared in family homes.
Daniel Doherty offered his services to a gang passing off puppies, which were seriously ill
His role in the plot was to vaccinate the puppies and provide treatment for some of the dogs
He denied any wrongdoing but was found guilty of conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation
Doherty’s role in the plot was to vaccinate the puppies and provide treatment for some of the dogs which were unwell.
The 50-year-old, of Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, denied any wrongdoing but was found guilty of conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation.
He was spared jail at Isleworth Crown Court in May, receiving a 12-month suspended sentence and 80 hours of unpaid community work.
But judges at the Court of Appeal said on Thursday that sentence was ‘unduly lenient’ and jailed him for three-and-a-half years.
He was ordered to hand himself in at Maidenhead Police station by 5pm on Thursday to begin his sentence.
The court also increased the sentences handed to three other members of the gang.
Mr Justice Holroyde said Doherty, who operated out of Uxbridge, west London, was a ‘professional man who played a vital role in this wicked conspiracy’.
The court heard records showed the gang took more than 4,500 puppies to Doherty over a five-year period.
RSPCA inspectors uncovered the scam last year after receiving a number of calls about ill or dying puppies which had been bought in the Hayes, west London, area.
Customers paid between £250 and £750 for dogs which had been commercially farmed abroad and imported into the UK.
Gang members used aliases and posed as caring families and bona fide dog breeders who were rearing puppies at their homes.
The court heard the gang took more than 4,500 puppies to Doherty over a five-year period.
A number of dogs had diseases, despite the owners having paperwork which indicated the puppies had been vaccinated, and many died.
Owners described their distress at having spent hundreds of pounds on what they believed were home-reared dogs, only to discover their beloved pets had been commercially farmed and were ill.
Some incurred huge vet bills and others had to go through the loss of their pets.
When RSPCA inspectors went to the homes of some of the gang members, they found dogs in poor conditions and some later died.
The Court of Appeal also jailed Edward Stokes, 35, of Bedfont, Feltham, who was originally given a two-year suspended sentence but has now been sent to prison for four years and eight months.
His brother Thomas Stokes, 26, of Hayes, had his three-year jail term increased to four years and eight months.
Simon O’Donnell, 30, of Uxbridge, had his two-year sentence doubled to four years.
All three men admitted conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation and animal welfare offences.
Speaking after the hearing, Solicitor General Robert Buckland, who referred the cases to the Court of Appeal under the unduly lenient sentencing scheme, said: ‘This group not only subjected thousands of puppies to atrocious living conditions, but also caused immense distress to families who had to watch their new pets suffer from serious illness.
‘I am pleased that the Court of Appeal has today agreed to increase all four sentences, and hope this will bring some comfort to the victims of their crimes.’