On Thursday, the Béthune juvenile court in Pas-de-Calais sentenced three 16-year-olds to prison terms, partly or totally accompanied by probation. They were found guilty of having literally massacred about thirty farm animals belonging to a retiree from their commune.
It is thanks to the father of one of the torturers that justice was able to sanction these “serious acts of abuse” and the “cruelty” with which they were committed, in February 2021, in the town of Leforest. It is indeed he who, noticing the suspicious behavior of his son, made him confess his misdeeds as well as the names of his two accomplices. And, on Thursday, the three teenagers appeared behind closed doors before the children’s court.
Exemplary sentences for minors
Faced with the seriousness of the acts of which the defendants were accused, the public prosecutor requested severe sentences for minors, ranging from 30 months in prison with ten months suspended sentence for one, to two years in prison, including 10 months suspended sentence for the second. For the third, prosecuted for complicity, the prosecution requested six months’ imprisonment.
At the end of the debates, which lasted until 9 p.m., the court retired to deliberate before rendering its decision in the evening. Two were found guilty of “acts of serious abuse, cruelty and degradation” and were sentenced to 18 months in prison with a probationary sentence of twelve months for two years. They will also have to meet an obligation of care and work. The latter was acquitted of acts of cruelty but found guilty of degradation. For this, he received a four-month suspended prison sentence.
As a civil party, the owner of the animals, aged 88, will receive the sum of 1,500 euros in damages and 500 euros in legal costs. The two other civil parties, the SPA and the association for the defense of animals Stéphane Lamart, will each receive 500 euros in damages and 750 euros for legal costs.