Merbein man, 57, fined $2,000 for gunning down six magpies, killing four and injuring two others

Man who went on a magpie killing spree is fined $2000 after the cruel act that left four birds dead and two injured

  • The 57-year-old man killed four magpies 
  • He pleaded guilty to 10 charges of animal cruelty
  • He was sentenced to two-year good behaviour 

A ‘callous’ animal abuser has been fined $2000 after he killed four magpies and injured two others.

The 57-year-old man from Merbein in Victoria’s north west at the Mildura Magistrates Court on Monday admitted to 10 charges of wounding and inflicting aggravated cruelty on an animal at his property in June 2021.

A probe into reports of native birds being gunned down in the Merbein area led to the charges, after the state’s conservation regulator found four dead and two seriously injured magpies.

A 57-year-old man has been fined $2,000 and sentenced to a two-year good behaviour bond after he admitted to gunning down magpies in the Merbein area, in Victoria’s north west 

The two injured birds later had to be euthanised by a veterinarian, the conservation regulator said.

‘Magpies are an iconic native bird and they are protected in Victoria,’ Loddon Mallee Region regulatory program manager Glenn Smith said.

‘There is no excuse for unlawfully killing or injuring them.’

Magistrate Patrick Southey condemned the 57-year-old’s actions as ‘callous’, describing the Australian magpie as beautiful and quintessential.

The animal abuser was slapped with a $2000 fine and sentenced to a two-year good behaviour bond.

He was also ordered to pay authorities’ costs of almost $400.

The result should be a warning to Victorians the regulator took wildlife crime seriously, Mr Smith said.

It is illegal to disturb or destroy wildlife in Victoria without authorisation.

***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk