HIGHLAND MAN SENTENCED FOR POSSESSING ANIMAL PORNOGRAPHY AND ORDERED TO SURRENDER PETS
A sheriff was so disgusted by a Highland man’s extreme pornography charge she postponed his sentencing to allow welfare authorities to confiscate his pet cats.Prosecutors took action after David Smith was found in possession of thousands of videos depicting grotesque sexual images involving animals.
The 67-year-old was scheduled for sentencing at Inverness Sheriff Court, but Sheriff Eilidh MacDonald adjourned proceedings to ensure the immediate removal of his six cats from his home on Teandallon Square, Evanton.
Court officials were instructed to contact animal welfare officers at the SSPCA, who were ordered to take the cats away to safety by 5.30pm.
The court heard Smith had previously admitted to possessing extreme pornographic images, which include bestiality depicted in explicit and realistic detail, comprising 242 still images and 2,653 videos on hard drives.
Police analysis indicated it would take 45 days to watch all the material.
The sheriff expressed significant concerns about Smith’s relationship with animals, considering the nature of the materials he possessed.
He was sentenced to a community payback order which requires him to attend sessions for sexual offenders, restricts his use of electronic devices, and prohibits him from keeping animals for three years.
Smith was also placed under three years of social work supervision.
His defense argued he would surrender his pets and undertake not to keep animals during the order.
The sheriff emphasized that failure to accept these conditions could lead to jail, and the order was made to protect animal welfare and prevent further offenses.
