Hampshire brothers jailed for animal cruelty, assault, and possession of offensive weapons

Kristen Christopher Cooper, 24, of Whitelands in Bransgore and Todd James Edward Cooper, 29, of Jubilee Court in Sway were sentenced for assault, animal cruelty and possession of offensive weapons at Southampton Crown Court on Friday, January 19. They were found guilty following a five-day trial in August 2023 where it was heard they fired a catapult at a man and crashed their SUV into the back of another car.

The brothers were sentenced to three years for incidents of assault that occurred on Saturday, March 4 in 2023. The brothers, and one other man, chased a member of public into a Co-op in Betsy Road, pushing him over and firing an item at him using a catapult. They fled the scene before returning in the evening, crashing their SUV into the back of a Vauxhall Astra and then confronting the occupants. They caused damage to the Astra using a baseball bat, crowbar and fired a ball bearing into the car using a catapult.

Sergeant Paul Buckland, of the Criminal Investigation Department, Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary, said: “I am extremely pleased with today’s outcome and to see that justice has now been served in this case. These men will now spend a significant amount of time behind bars, which is exactly where they belong. Today’s sentencing means these men can no longer harm anyone else.”

He added: “To echo the judge’s remarks while sentencing, the whole incident must have been extremely traumatic for the victims. It is abundantly clear that these two men believed they could terrorise New Forest residents with impunity, with a total disregard for any consequences. I must place on record my thanks to the victims in this case for their support, assistance and determination throughout the investigation and court process. I hope these sentences will help them to move on with their lives, safe in the knowledge that these men are locked away.”

Further to the sentencing of assault and possession of an offensive weapon, Kristen Cooper was also sentenced to two years imprisonment after admitting seven offences of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal. While Todd Cooper received an additional sentence of eight months for animal cruelty offences. Police seized Kristen Cooper's phone and found videos of the brothers causing unnecessary suffering to animals, predominantly in rural areas at night.

The videos showed evidence of mutilation to animals, with the brothers encouraging their dogs to attack deer's and hares. One video showed them holding down a deer while they struck it over the head with a blunt object.

Angharad Thomas, Crown Prosecution Service Wessex Wildlife Lead, said: “This was a shocking case, involving unimaginable violence and cruelty to animals on a level that I have, thankfully, rarely seen before. Working closely with the Rural Crime Team throughout, we were able to make sure we had all the evidence we needed for a strong prosecution case, ensuring that these defendants faced justice for their cruelty and absolute disregard for protected animals.”

Both men will serve half of their sentence before being eligible for release on licence. Kristen Cooper will also be subject to a Criminal behaviour Order for ten years, disqualified from owning a dog for ten years, and he and Todd Cooper must adhere to the conditions of a restraining order, which is in place to prevent them from having any contact with their two victims.