A Parla resident encountered a terribly sordid scene last September while walking with her dog along Vereda de las Veguillas, a countryside path on the outskirts of the municipality of Madrid. From the fence surrounding the farm of a cattle ranch, she observed in disbelief a mountain of sheep corpses, one on top of the other, in a state of semi-rot. He immediately called 112 which activated the alarm.
The first to appear on the scene were the agents of the National Police, who verified the veracity of the woman’s story and coordinated both with the Forestry Agents Corps of the Community of Madrid and with the Animal Protection Zone of the Ministry of the Environment, Agriculture and the Interior. Officers counted a total of 50 dead sheep and many other diseased animals inside a rotting warehouse which had a total of 220 sheep heads. The result of their investigations was the arrest of the owner of the farm, a 51-year-old Spaniard dedicated to the sale of livestock, who already had a criminal record with the Guardia Civil for another environmental crime of forest fire. He is now accused of “animal abuse and abandonment of vertebrates resulting in death”. The police note on this matter was sent this Wednesday.
According to the researchers, the rest of the animals showed signs of illness, as “the sheep showed a lack of veterinary care and follow-up,” the note reads. In fact, they point out, the sick sheep had respiratory pathologies, lameness, inflammation and infections of the udder or hoof anomalies.
The farm was located in a warehouse, with approximately 220 animals. The materials that made up the enclosures were rusty and broken, while the substrate on which the animals were kept consisted mostly of feces, without being adequately disinfected.
No documentation
The man stopped did not have any type of documentation or booklet relating to the farm and declared that the vet had not been on site since February 2025. The food supplied to the sheep was deposited on the ground, not contained in an airtight container. The straw was blackish in some areas, indicating poor preservation and could pose a risk to animals if consumed. Similarly, remains and feathers of a dead bird were found on the feed, resulting in a health risk, the police note warns.
For all these reasons, in September 2025, National Police officers arrested this man as allegedly responsible for the mistreatment and abandonment of a vertebrate animal resulting in death following the failure to provide veterinary care necessary for the care of such animals. After his arrest he was made available to the judicial authorities.
