Two teenagers have been arrested after a car was used to mow down and kill 14 young lambs in a farmer’s field.
A 15 year old boy from Redhill and a 19 year old man of no fixed address have been arrested in connection with the death of the lambs at Gate Street Farm in Bramley, near Godalming, overnight between January 17 and 18.
They have also been arrested on suspicion of arson in connection with a large fire that started in a barn at Tower Hill Farm in Gomshall on Saturday, January 13.
Both teens have been released on bail pending further police enquiries.
It comes after farmer Nick Hutley awoke on Thursday morning last week to sickening news that a ‘monster’ had rammed down his young sheep – worth around £2,000 each – having broken down several gates to enter overnight.
The 65-year-old says nothing this horrific has occurred on the farm in the more than half a century his family has owned it, and believes those responsible could also be behind other recent rural crimes.
Mr Hutley, whose father bought his farm back in 1965, said the sadistic sheep killers must have exited their vehicle to open three gates before entering the field with the sheep.
“It’s truly horrific,” said Mr Hutley, a father-of-three and grandfather-of-eight.
“We are still reeling from it and can’t quite get over it. It’s just appalling.
“They would have had to get out of the vehicle to lift the first gate off its hinge.
“It was a double wooden gate and fairly substantial – a two-man job to lift it.”
Describing the moments he first saw his livestock lying open-eyed on their sides in the field which held around 50 sheep, Mr Hutley said: “It was a state of shock...
“My first reaction was that there must be some sort of dreadful disease, then reality sets in – there’s not a disease that could have killed 14 healthy sheep like this.
“As I approached them I thought maybe they’d been shot or attacked by a dog – then I saw the tyre tracks and realised somebody had driven over them.
“I still find it difficult to comprehend that any monster would get any satisfaction from running over animals.
“It’s a notion I cannot fathom at all. It just doesn’t pass any form of sense that a monster could do something as barbaric and cruel as this.”
Two of the poor sheep, born just last year and reared for meat, were still alive when they were found and had to be put down.
Mr Hutley believes the inhumane attack could be linked to other recent rural crimes in the area, including when one of the farm’s pigs was stolen last month.
“I have heard stories of a local farmer having his cows shot at,” he said.
“I think there’s some psychopath with a grudge against animals on the loose, and if something is not done soon, I can only think this will get worse.”
Car parts including part of a bumper were found in the field alongside the strewn bodies of the lambs, leading Mr Hutley to believe the car driven was a Nissan 4x4.
Surrey Police are appealing for any information on the incident, including any dashcam footage and sightings of damaged vehicles, to come forward.