Man who left pets without food and water near dead dogs jailed for five years

A man who took money to rehome pets and left dogs and a cat without food and water in filthy conditions among the carcasses of other dogs has been jailed for five years.

Oaveed Rahman, 26, purported to be looking after the animals at a rehoming centre called Save A Paw in Crays Hill, Billericay, Essex, but actually left them to suffer.

A vet who was called to the scene with police last May 13 said that as soon as she left her vehicle, which was parked about 40 metres away from Rahman’s property, she could smell rotting flesh.

Remains of dogs were found in bins and throughout the site, with some piled up “like rubbish”, the sentencing judge said.

Basildon Crown Court heard on Friday that veterinary surgeon Amy Cooper saw masses of bodies riddled with maggots with rats around the kennels.

Some 21 dogs which were alive were kept in pens or confined to small spaces.

Tom Godfrey, prosecuting, told the court that Ms Cooper said in a statement: “I can honestly say what I smelt and saw was the most horrific thing I have ever seen.

“It was clear just from a general initial inspection that these animals were all suffering.”

Sentencing him, Judge Richard Conley said Rahman’s fraud was “an act of betrayal of epic proportions that has devastated many lives”.

He said Rahman had convinced decent and well-meaning pet owners to entrust their beloved animals into his care.

“In fact many animals taken in by you… were subjected to prolonged barbaric mistreatment, cruelty and neglect,” Judge Conley said.

“Some of them died directly as a result.”

Faeces was found inside the pens and cages, and many of the dogs were severely underweight but did not have access to food, the court heard.

Ms Cooper said the dogs kept in pens would have faced “mental turmoil” as there were open bags of food in the property which they could not access.

Victims whose dogs were “rehomed” by Rahman and their supporters in the packed public gallery sobbed as Mr Godfrey told of the condition the animals were found in.

Later, after Rahman was sentenced, a victim in the court shouted at him through the video link: “F****** bastard, I hope you rot in there you dirty bastard.”

Three of the 21 dogs were so unwell they had to be put down, and one poodle later went blind, the court heard.

Rahman previously pleaded guilty to cruelty against 21 dogs and a cat, and 11 counts of fraud by false representation.

Police found 37 dead dogs when they first searched the rehoming centre, where dogs were left to roam among the carcasses.

Four more dead dogs were found when a shed was demolished during a later visit.

Emma Thompson said she feels “extremely traumatised” by what happened to her dog.

She planned to rehome him after the dalmatian pointer cross had shown signs of aggression, and she was pregnant.

“I often think about how confused, scared and sad Lennon must’ve felt being taken from the family he loved, transported to Essex and taken to a stranger,” she said in a victim impact statement read to the court by Mr Godfrey.

“He would’ve smelt the death of other dogs at the property.”

Ms Thompson paid Rahman a £300 “surrender fee” and a further £200 as a charitable donation.

Lennon was one of the dogs found dead during the first raid.

Tina Davis, another of Rahman’s victims, took her dog Chad, a pocket bully, to Save A Paw to be rehomed after he had a fight with her other dog.

In her victim impact statement, read to the court, she said: “I was devastated at the prospect of giving up my dog but knew it was required for Chad to have the best possible life.

“I torture myself, wondering how much he suffered.

“He must’ve thought I didn’t love him to leave him at that wretched place… I question if I will ever forgive myself.”

Chad is still missing, the court heard.

Some of Rahman’s victims contacted him on his Facebook page for Save A Paw, which had good reviews, the court heard.

He was sometimes paid a “surrender fee” and also accepted “donations” to his organisation, which he told victims was a charity – but in fact an application for charitable status had been refused.

Rahman took around £4,800 from his 11 victims, telling them it would be used to rehome dogs, provide a new kennel block or train dogs to behave around children and other animals.

He promised to keep in touch with people about how their dogs were doing, the court heard, but often became difficult to contact and in some cases blocked the people who had taken their dogs to him.

Officers said they spoke to people in 20 counties in connection with Rahman’s crimes.

People from as far as Scotland used Rahman’s services to “rehome” their dogs.

“We’ll never truly know the extent of how far maybe offending or this behaviour has gone,” said Superintendent Leigh Norris of Essex Police.

When Molly Pinkus, mitigating, said Rahman had expressed remorse over his crimes, people in the public gallery sighed, tutted, shook their heads and even laughed.

Judge Conley had to ask the court for quiet to allow Ms Pinkus to continue.

He asked her for “some understanding of motivation”.

“It is so impossible to understand what can cause a person to do the things that he did,” Judge Conley said.

“I can’t make sense of it, probation can’t make sense of it, the psychiatrist can’t make sense of it.”

She said Rahman, who was privately educated, suffered with mental ill health, and began his enterprise with a genuine desire to look after dogs.

Mr Godfrey said: “Rahman made the decision to house these dogs in inhumane conditions… whether this was some satisfaction from the power that he was able to exert over these dogs is a matter for your honour, but it is difficult to see why else Rahman would house the live dogs with the deceased dogs.”

Rahman appeared by video link from HMP Chelmsford on Friday and wore a grey cardigan.

He spoke only to confirm his name and to enter a guilty plea to the charge of owning a fighting dog, an XL bully.

The judge said the XL bully Bella was also a victim of Rahman’s “callous mistreatment”.

“I am aware that no sentence that I can lawfully impose can adequately reflect the justifiable anger and disgust at what you have done,” the judge said.

“Some wrongs, simply cannot be put right.”

He sentenced Rahman to five years’ imprisonment, with 38 months of that for animal cruelty.

The animal cruelty sentence will run consecutively to the fraud counts, for which he was sentenced to 22 months for each count, to all run concurrently.

He was also sentenced to three months’ imprisonment, to run concurrently, for owning the banned XL bully, and was banned from owning dogs and cats for life.

Rahman can apply for the ban to be lifted after 15 years.

He was also sentenced to a deprivation order, meaning the dogs found at his property can be taken.

Costs will be dealt with at a later date.