Cruelty to animals: suspended sentence for animal transporter on the Lower Main

A transporter of slaughter animals for a slaughterhouse on the Lower Main has been sentenced to one and a half years in prison by the Obernburg district court for animal cruelty. The sentence was suspended and the probation period was set at three years, a court spokesman said. In addition, the 57-year-old, who admitted the allegations, should pay 3,000 euros to a charitable organization. The verdict is not yet final.

The employee of a livestock marketing cooperative was accused of cruel animal abuse in several cases - and was convicted for it. The incidents are said to have occurred between September 2022 and August 2023.

With the verdict, the court largely followed the request of the public prosecutor, who had called for a prison sentence of one year and nine months, suspended on probation. The defense had pleaded for a high fine.

The defendant is said to have brought cattle that were unfit for slaughter and transport to the slaughterhouse in the Miltenberg district. These were said to have included sick, injured or pregnant animals.

In February 2025, the district court had already sentenced two farmers from Hesse and the Schweinfurt district to fines for animal cruelty at the slaughterhouse. The former slaughterhouse operator received a one-year prison sentence, suspended on probation, last December.

The company in the Miltenberg district, along with the Aschaffenburg slaughterhouse, came into the sights of the authorities after video material was published by an animal rights organization. Due to serious deficiencies in animal protection, the Miltenberg district office banned the slaughterhouse in the district from working with immediate effect in the summer of 2023.