Australia: Bevin Hames, 37, pleads guilty to animal cruelty after friendly Quokka "somehow" got dumped into the ocean and had to swim to shore

AUSTRALIA -- A Christchurch man who was charged with animal cruelty after claims he threw a native Australia animal off a jetty has pleaded guilty.

Bevin Denis Hames, 37, was accused by police of throwing a quokka into the ocean at Rottnest Island, off the coast of Western Australia (WA) on Friday night.

However, in the Perth Magistrates Court on Monday, the man with a zoology degree defended himself by accepting he placed the animal in the water rather than threw it, the ABC reported.

The quokka, a marsupial, swam to shore and a ranger later found it, unharmed, according to The West Australian.

Hames said he had been demonstrating to friends the animals were good swimmers, the ABC reported.

So he found it, picked it up, carried it to the jetty and then he either "placed it into the water" or it "jumped into the water because it was in such distress at being grabbed". Why's he even bothering it to begin with? If it had drowned, whose fault would it be regardless of whether it had "jumped" or been "placed into the water"??? He's an idiot.

Beloved: Quokkas are adorable little marsupials

His lawyer told the court Hames was not aware he was doing anything wrong and had no intention to.

Hames was granted a spent conviction and fined $2000 (NZ $2200).

Quokkas are found on smaller islands off the WA coast. Just one small colony exists on the mainland near Albany, WA.

VIDEO: Dr Harry visits Rottnest Island to meet some of the locals – of the furry kind! From kangaroos to fur seals and ospreys, plus the island’s most famous residents, quokkas.


(Stuff NZ - March 21, 2017)

Teenager who kicked Quokka fined $2500 for animal cruelty

AUSTRALIA -- A teenager who kicked a Rottnest Island quokka two metres into the air has avoided jail and walked away from Fremantle Magistrates Court with a $2500 fine.

Nathan Schuitema appeared in court on Wednesday morning and pleaded guilty to a charge of animal cruelty for the attack, which saw him evicted from the holiday island on December 7.

Beloved: Quokkas are adorable little marsupials

The 18-year-old kicked the quokka in the back as it sat on a road near the Geordie Bay settlement, in what his lawyer described as a moment of drunken stupidity.

Police witnessed the attack and arrested Schuitema, but were unable to find the marsupial and confirm the severity of its injuries.

At his sentencing, Magistrate Langdon said the offence was "a black mark" on the youngster's character but granted a spent conviction and fine on the basis of his age, previous good character and the fact he had shown remorse.

Schuitema, who wrote a letter of apology to the Rottnest Island Authority, apologised for the cruel attack.

"I'm sorry to Rottnest Island... I respect animals and I'm very embarrassed for what I did." he said outside court.

It is not the first time there has been issues with animal cruelty from tourists on the island. Earlier this year two French backpackers were fined for torching a quokka.

 Thibaud Jean Leon Vallet, 24, who has a master's degree in journalism and a police officer for a father, pleaded guilty to animal cruelty in April, alongside his cousin Jean Mickael Batrikian, 18.

The two men were fined $4000 each in Fremantle Magistrates Court after burning the quokka using a deodorant can and a lighter on April 3.

(WA Today - Dec 23, 2015)