25 Feb 2026
Hove Crown Court heard the men posed a ‘high risk’ of harming other animals.
Vet Times
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Leighton Ashby, 22, and Oakley Hollands, 20.
Two agricultural students have been detained for what a judge described as their “callous and frankly sadistic” fatal attack on a sheep in Sussex.
Leighton Ashby, 22, was jailed for two years, while Oakley Rowlands, 20, was sentenced to 20 months in a young offenders’ institution at Hove Crown Court yesterday, 23 February.
The pair had previously pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering in connection with the attack in November 2023.
The court heard the sheep was caught and repeatedly kicked and punched by Ashby, of Ashford, Kent, before explosives were used to cause further injuries and “mutilating” the corpse.
The attack was filmed by Rowlands, of Horton Kirby, Kent, who was heard laughing and telling Ashby to “kill it”, the Brighton Argus reported.
Police later said other videos showing both dead and live animals being attacked were found on Rowlands’ phone.
The defendants, who were both students of Plumpton College at the time, were said to pose a “high risk” to animals while a community impact statement submitted by police expressed fears they would “transfer this behaviour into their relationships with humans”.
Ashby’s lawyer argued the incident was “entirely out of character”, while Hollands’ representative stressed he had accepted responsibility through his guilty plea.
But Judge Jeremy Gold said they had carried out the attack for their own “perverse satisfaction”.
He added: “The fact that you both come from farming backgrounds and were studying at Plumpton at the time makes your callous and frankly sadistic behaviour all the more alarming and difficult to comprehend.”
In a statement published on its website, Plumpton College stressed its support for the court process and said the case was “completely at odds with the core values and high standards upheld by everyone” there.
It added: “It has been deeply distressing for our community, and we remain committed to maintaining the highest standards of animal welfare, conduct and professionalism expected of all our students.”
