Devon farmer's horror as sheep killed and 'butchered' in field

Warning: This article contains descriptions that some may find distressing.

A farmer from Devon has described the scene when he uncovered a brutal and barbaric attack on his herd of sheep.

The farmer, who keeps the animals on land near Exeter, does not want to be named for fear of repercussions.

He told ITV News West Country he and his wife discovered six of their sheep had been killed when they went to carry out a routine check on the flock at around 9pm on Monday 22 July.

The animals' carcasses had been stolen - but their heads had been cut off and left behind.

One of the sheep killed had a lamb which is just six weeks old and is now missing.

He said: “I just stood there, staring at it, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Obviously we’ve seen dead sheep before, we’ve seen what foxes can do or dog attacks but they ripped the animal apart.

“Then my partner found a sheep’s head just thrown into the scrub on the opposite side of the field. It was then the penny dropped that the animal had been slaughtered.”

ITV News West Country has seen pictures of the aftermath but decided not to publish them due to their graphic nature.

Whoever was responsible for the attack washed their bloodied knives in the remaining sheeps’ water afterwards.

The farmer said: “You could see the bloody trail where they had dragged the carcasses to the gateway and removed them from the field.

"They must have either shot the sheep or used some sort of weapon, possibly a crossbow to take the sheep down, because it would have been extremely difficult to catch these sheep in a field that size in order to do this.”

The farmer explained how he loves his animals, some of them even have names. He said the remaining sheep have been left traumatised.

The farmer said: “We have a hard enough life as it is and the cost of farming in general is putting a lot of pressure on people and we simply do not need the worry of checking your livestock to find somebody to basically help themselves and not only that but brutally murder your animals and then stolen them.”

And the farmer said it has also left him and other people in the area concerned: “These people are not only carrying around knives but are obviously capable of butchering an animal, but they're also armed with the means to take these animals down.

“Obviously we're horrified and stunned that this kind of thing is going on and also quite worried about what would happen if these people were disturbed whilst they are carrying out what they do because in order to get these animals out of the field, we think that probably was at least two, three, possibly four of them.”

The farmer is also concerned that the sheep could end up being sold for meat and he’s warning that the animals are not safe for human consumption because of medical treatment they were receiving.

A statement from PC Clarke Orchard, of the Rural Affairs Team at Devon and Cornwall Police said: “We understand that this incident will be concerning for people living in rural communities and urge farmers in the area to be extra vigilant over coming weeks.

“We’re working closely with the farmer to investigate this devastating incident and are appealing to anyone who may have witnessed any suspicious activity in and around Exeter on Monday evening to please contact us. Information can be provided online or by calling 101, quoting crime reference 50240182871.

"Alternatively, information can be shared anonymously with independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or via: www.crimestoppers-uk.org".