ANDREW GILDEA AND DARREN KINCAID

ANDREW GILDEA AND DARREN KINCAID FROM LARNE AND BELFAST SENTENCED FOR ANIMAL CRUELTY

In 2019, Andrew Gildea, born on February 24, 1995, from Larne, and Darren Kincaid, born around 1999, from North Belfast, were convicted for filming themselves torturing a seagull.

Photos from their court appearance show Gildea and Kincaid during their hearing.

The incident involved the two men luring a hungry Black-headed Gull, which they nicknamed 'Steven Seagull,' with chips.

They then forced the frightened bird into the footwell of Gildea’s car.

Over the course of several hours, they drove the distressed bird around Larne and Belfast, parading it for friends and family.

Eventually, they took the gull to Gildea’s home, where they live-streamed multiple videos on Facebook showing the bird being harassed and tortured.

The disturbing footage sparked outrage among online animal welfare advocates, leading to police reports and the pair voluntarily surrendering themselves.

At Belfast’s Laganside Courthouse, both Gildea and Kincaid pleaded guilty to charges of causing unnecessary suffering to an animal.

They were scheduled to be sentenced in March 2019, with further court proceedings expected.

Prosecutors revealed that several videos were uploaded to Facebook on June 11, 2018, within a two-hour window, documenting the bird’s suffering.

In the initial clip, Gildea was seen grabbing the bird and placing it into the passenger footwell of his vehicle, sealing the windows to prevent its escape.

Witnesses described the seagull as flapping vigorously and appearing extremely distressed.

Additional videos depict the bird standing on a toolbox in Gildea’s garage, where it was teased and poked, visibly upset before being confined in a plastic box.

Gildea told police that he had enticed the bird with chips and livestreamed the ordeal but claimed he did not intend to cause harm.

Kincaid admitted to being a passenger in the car and involved in taking the gull to various addresses.

He stated that he had experience handling pigeons and knew how to treat birds properly.

He also told officers he had drilled holes into the plastic box to ensure the bird could breathe.

Despite the abuse, the gull, nicknamed 'Steven Seagull,' survived and was later released.

District Judge William McNally, however, was deeply unimpressed with their behavior.

He adjourned the case to review the videos before sentencing and remarked, "I remember seeing a cat playing with a mouse, and your behavior reminds me of that cruelty.

Playing with this bird is as cruel a thing as I have heard about in a long time.

These are horrid videos with many views, and I regard it as a very serious matter." Following the incident and the negative social media backlash, Gildea continued to joke about 'Steven Seagull' for several months on Facebook, with friends sharing memes, news stories, and jokes.

Nonetheless, he later posted a message expressing regret: "I’m probably the most kind-hearted person and I would do anything for everyone.

Everyone I know would vouch for me being a nice guy.

However, I’ll only be ever remembered as the man who allegedly stole a seagull." Gildea and Kincaid faced potential sentences of up to six months in prison for causing unnecessary suffering to an animal.

As of the latest reports, the outcome of their sentencing remains unrecorded.