Kidderminster man sentenced for causing unnecessary suffering to a dog

A man who threw his dog at a parked car’s windscreen has been sentenced for animal cruelty offences.

Jamie Cook, of Hurcott Road in Kidderminster, was convicted of two counts of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal, one count of assault emergency worker and one count of criminal damage at Kidderminster Magistrates Court on Monday.

The 27-year-old, who pled guilty at an earlier hearing, was given a 16-week custodial sentence and banned from owning an animal for 10 years for the animal cruelty charges. Eight of the 16 weeks sentence will be served on licence.

He was given a two-week custodial sentence for the assault emergency worker conviction to be served concurrently. 

Cook was also ordered to pay compensation of £95 for the damage to the car.

The sentence follows an investigation by Kidderminster officers into an incident in New Road on Wednesday, July 31 when Cook was reported to police by a member of the public for kicking and punching his dog.

Later, another witness saw him pick up the dog and throw it on to the windscreen of a parked car in Long Acre.

Police Constable Callum Archer attended the incident and identified Cook from CCTV footage before arresting him at his home address, while Cook spat on another officer in custody.

West Mercia Police said the dog was not seriously injured despite its treatment and was rehomed after the ordeal.

Investigating officer PC Archer said: “This was a particularly cruel attack on what was the owner’s own dog, so we are pleased to get a conviction and see him banned from owning animals as well as serving jail time.

“Thank you to those members of the public who reported his violent actions to us and helped our investigation secure this sentence.

“Fortunately, the dog came through the ordeal physically unscathed and has now been rehomed.”