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| Animal rights activist sentenced for Pickwell pig theft | Animal rights activist sentenced for Pickwell pig theft |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| An animal rights activist who stole a pig from a farm has been sentenced. | An animal rights activist who stole a pig from a farm has been sentenced. |
| Wesley Omar, 23, filmed himself taking the pig from Belmont Farm, in Pickwell, near Melton Mowbray, last July and posted the footage on YouTube. | Wesley Omar, 23, filmed himself taking the pig from Belmont Farm, in Pickwell, near Melton Mowbray, last July and posted the footage on YouTube. |
| Omar, of King Edwards Way, in Edith Weston, Rutland, admitted theft and said he did it to raise awareness of the conditions animals are kept in. | Omar, of King Edwards Way, in Edith Weston, Rutland, admitted theft and said he did it to raise awareness of the conditions animals are kept in. |
| At Leicester Crown Court, he was handed a 12-month community order and 100 hours of unpaid work. | At Leicester Crown Court, he was handed a 12-month community order and 100 hours of unpaid work. |
| Judge Nicholas Dean QC described Omar as an "intelligent young man". | Judge Nicholas Dean QC described Omar as an "intelligent young man". |
| "You are not entitled to commit criminal acts in the form of protest," the judge told Omar. | "You are not entitled to commit criminal acts in the form of protest," the judge told Omar. |
| On YouTube, alongside the video, Omar wrote he found the pigs "cramped in hot conditions" and "covered in their own faeces". | |
| "This place broke my heart, seeing thousands of innocent pigs corridor after corridor that were squeezed up against each other with a horrible stench coming from the disgusting conditions they were kept in," he said. | "This place broke my heart, seeing thousands of innocent pigs corridor after corridor that were squeezed up against each other with a horrible stench coming from the disgusting conditions they were kept in," he said. |
| The pig he stole, which was facing slaughter, was valued at about £50. | The pig he stole, which was facing slaughter, was valued at about £50. |
| It could not be returned because of contamination fears and it has since been named Wilbur and living on an animal sanctuary. | It could not be returned because of contamination fears and it has since been named Wilbur and living on an animal sanctuary. |
| Judge Dean QC said the conviction would serve as a punishment because it would affect future employment. | Judge Dean QC said the conviction would serve as a punishment because it would affect future employment. |
| The court heard the farmer has since invested up to £6,000 on new security measures, including CCTV and fences. |