A well-known British crocodile expert has been jailed for 10 years and five months in Australia after admitting to sexually abusing dozens of dogs in a case that shocked the country.
Adam Britton, a zoologist who has worked with the BBC and National Geographic, pleaded guilty to 56 counts of animal cruelty.
He also admitted four counts of accessing child abuse material.
The court heard that the 53-year-old filmed himself torturing the animals until they nearly died, and then shared the videos online, the BBC reported.
His abuse went unnoticed for years, until a trace of it was found on video. Britton was arrested in April 2022 after a search of his property also revealed child abuse material on his laptop.
As the facts were presented in court, some of the citizens in the audience ran out. Others cried and cursed Britton.
Britton's lawyer has argued that his crimes were driven by a rare disorder that causes unusual sexual interests.
Britton tortured at least 42 dogs, killing 39 of them. His file provides details of the crimes during the 18 months before his arrest, but again it fills a full 90 pages.
He has often taken in other people's dogs who are usually traveling and looking for a sitter. The documents say he negotiated ownership and then if they asked, he would send them old photos of the dogs.
In reality, he was abusing these animals in a container that he owned and where he had installed the filming equipment. He called it the "torture room". From there he published footage of his crimes.
When asked how he disposed of the dog's waste, Britton said that he threw some of it to feed other animals.
