A Perth teenager, who went on a Christmas Eve kangaroo killing rampage, has been sentenced to eight months in prison for cruelly killing 11 of the animals.
Boston King, 18, was sentenced on Tuesday for what a magistrate labelled as an “extraordinarily cruel, sadistic, barbaric slaughter” in 2022.
The 18-year-old admitted to drinking with friends at the pub in Bullsbrook before brutally mowing down almost a dozen kangaroos in his LandCruiser then mutilating their bodies and hanging them on a nearby fence. During the sentencing at Midland Magistrates Court on Tuesday, the court heard he had deliberately mounted curbs and ploughed into multiple kangaroos in a sickening “killing spree” while two of his friends in the car encouraged it.
He then sadistically used a knife to cut body parts off the animals, some kangaroos believed to have been still alive after being hit by the car.
The community of the semi-rural area of Bullsbrook was devastated, saying the animals were well known to locals, could be hand-fed and were known by names.On Tuesday, Magistrate Gregory Benn shot down Boston’s lawyers’ requests for a community service order, calling it “absolutely appalling behaviour”.
“You made the decision to go out and drink that night, Mr King, no one forced you to do that,” he said.
“You made the decision to drive affected by alcohol, and you made the decision to commit these offences – and it wasn’t just one momentary lapse of decision-making. You actually, after ploughing into the first, got out [and] used a knife to remove the tail and the leg.
“Whether you or your mate hung the tail on the gate, [it] is still somewhat disturbing in the context of the offending, Mr King.”
Mr Benn went on to say that a term of imprisonment would act as a deterrence to King and others considering similar behaviour.
“[These] animals presented you with no threat, weren’t doing any harm to anyone, and who it could be said had as much right to live peacefully in this world, just like you or your mates,” he said.
“Kangaroos were an important part of this local community and they had to get up in the morning and see your handiwork spread all over the road.Mr Benn also said the kangaroos were a “special part of the community”.
The court heard how King had received online threats since the incident, with some saying he was “a dead man walking” and “we’re going to hit you with our car”.
“Very nasty online comments, vile threats and abuse in his direction,” King’s lawyer told the court.
“They said, ‘We have money for a hitman’.
“For an 18-year-old this has affected him, this has gone to another level.”
But Mr Benn was unphased by this and felt imprisonment was the only appropriate outcome.
“You used your vehicle as a weapon,” he said.
“The penalty I impose has to reflect the very serious nature of this offending, and act as a personal [and general] deterrence.”
King will be eligible for parole after four months for the animal cruelty charge.
He was given an 18-month driving ban and a $1000 fine, including court costs for reckless driving.
Wild scenes erupted outside the court with protestors allegedly flinging red liquid at King as he entered the courtroom. Chittering Wildlife Carer Dean Arthurell said he did not believe justice had been served.
“Receiving an eight-month sentence doesn’t really reflect community expectations,” he told 9News.