A CRIMINAL gang that illegally field-slaughtered and butchered at least 120 sheep and lambs to sell as black market meat has been jailed.

At Northampton Crown Court, Robert Iordan, 23, and Florin Nutu, 36, were each sentenced to four years and four months, and a third man, Viorel Manu, 39, was given two years and 11 months.

They had pleaded guilty to an astonishing four-month slaughter spree in the Midlands county, between June 22 and October 7 last year, evading Northamptonshire Police by striking quickly in the dead of night.

The court heard that the men became involved in the killings out of desperation for money – but Police are still trying to trace who actually bought the illegal meat.

Speaking to the men via video link at Northampton Crown Court, Judge Adrienne Lucking described the killings as “gruesome and distressing”.

“The sheep were in each case stolen for their meat, butchered in the fields, and their unwanted body parts left strewn around for their owners to find. The sheep were stolen from seven different owners. Not all of the sheep were farm livestock, some were in fact pets.

“On one occasion two very young children were completely traumatised finding their sheep slaughtered and butchered, such that they were screaming at the sight.”

Lead investigator Det Con Jamie Cooper of Northamptonshire Police said: “These crimes caused farmers a great deal of upset and anger last year and I’d like to thank them and the wider rural community for their support and patience during our investigation.”

In a statement read to the court, the English NFU said: “The successive strain of events over several months put an immeasurable amount of stress on farmers and their families and is something we hope never to see again.”

The men were finally caught fleeing from the scene of their latest slaughter when they were caught by police on the A14 on October 10, 2019. In the back of their far from hygienic van, police found bloodied butcher knives, a motorised air pump – and the freshly slaughtered carcasses of nine sheep.

 

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