Farmer who admitted role in 'one of worst' cases of animal cruelty faces up to five years in jail

David Raleigh

A Co Limerick farmer has become a “pariah” in his local community after he pleaded guilty to “one of the worst” cases of animal cruelty, a court heard.

Seamus Looby (68), Raheen, Garryspillane, pleaded guilty to 173 offences after large numbers of rotting and dead calves were found across 100 acres of his lands in 2022.

Looby had a prior animal cruelty-related conviction from 2018, when he was fined €1,150, and ordered to pay €1,000 to the ISPCA, and restricted from owning dogs.

Then, Looby admitted before Kilmallock District Court to causing unnecessary suffering of more than 30 dogs, there which died, delivered by another man at his farm, that were found dehydrated, flea-ridden, tightly chained up, weak and lethargic.

At Looby’s sentencing hearing at Limerick Circuit Criminal Court on Tuesday, prosecuting counsel, Lily Buckley, said the State understood that some or all of the fines from 2018 “may not have been paid”.

Buckley said Looby pleaded guilty to 173 out of 318 charges of animal neglect, on a full facts basis, in respect of hundreds of calves, at his farm, between March and September 2022.

Buckley said that, on August 16th, 2022, Chris Normoyle, a veterinarian inspector at the Department of Agriculture, acting on a complaint, visited Looby’s lands and found “a distinctive smell of decomposing animals and evidence of animal cruelty and neglect”.

Buckley, instructed by Co Limerick State Solicitor, Brendan Gill, and assisted by paralegal, Sarah Heanevor, said Mr Normoyle described how “in his 21-years experience it was, in his opinion, one of the worst cases of animal neglect”.

Arthur O’Connor, investigations unit, Department of Agriculture gave evidence of finding large amounts of “dead” calves as well as calves in “severe distress”, some that were half-eaten by “scavengers”.

The calves that had clung to life were “severely dehydrated, grunting, and panting”; while others had their eyes pecked out.

The department “ended their suffering” through euthanising them humanely.

Calves that tried to access a stream on Looby’s lands, “drowned” in the water as they were “too weak” to get out.

O’Connor agreed with Ms Buckley that the calves were “totally neglected” as they needed to be milk-fed twice daily, but did not receive their feed.

O’Connor said he found calf “spinal cords”, “jawbones”, “hip bones”, “leg bones”, “scattered” across Looby’s farmland.

He said he also found the remnants of calves that appeared to have been burned. Looby denied any involvement in burning carcasses.

Looby told department officials that another man owned the calves and delivered them to his lands, and he denied a claim by the other man that he was paid to look the the calves.

Looby admitted 67 counts of breaching a duty to protect animal welfare; 68 counts of prohibition on animal cruelty, in that he caused unnecessary suffering and danger to calves; 27 counts of failing to comply with an Animal Welfare Notice arising from the Department of Agriculture investiagtion; and 11 counts of breaching EU Animal By-Products Regulations, failing to dispose of dead calf carcasses.

Buckley said the department investigated the movement of 420 calves onto Looby’s farm by the other man.

The majority of the calves were found dead or dying; 256 of the calves were missing and presumed dead.

84 calves were found alive at the farm, 66 of them had to be euthanised by the department.

Almost 60 of the carcasses were identifiable through their herd number tags. 18 of the calves were sold on the open market.

Looby’s barrister, senior counsel, Colman Cody, suggested that Looby was “manipulated” into keeping the calves on his land by another man who was not before the court.

The court heard the other man allegedly took possession of the calves from farmers who were happy to part with the animals, as they were considered to be of low or no value.

The other man also allegedly fraudulently signed for the calves using another farmer’s signature without that farmer’s knowledge.

The man was supposed to pay for the calves feed, but he ultimately failed to do so after he ended up incarcerated in Wheatfield Prison on unrelated criminal charges, the court heard.

O’Connor agreed, under cross examination by Mr Cody, that, in his opinion, Looby was not the “mastermind”, but he said the background to the relationship between Looby and the other man remained unclear.

Cody said Looby had become a “pariah” among his local farming community because of the “very serious” animal neglect on his land.

Looby faces up to five years in prison and or a €250,000 fine.

Cody asked the court not to jail Looby, citing his age, as well as medical reports that found that he was not in good mental or physical health.

Cody argued that, after the department had visited Looby’s lands, he had tried to clear the farm of all carcasses; he had cooperated fully with the department investigators; and he had pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity.

Cody said Looby was “shameful”, “remorseful”, and he had since signed over the running of the farm to other family members, who were in court to support him but were struggling to understand how he had got himself involved.

Judge Fiona O’Sullivan remanded Looby on continuing bail to June 3rd to fix a date for sentence.