A Parla resident encountered a very dirty scene last September while walking her dog along Vereda de las Veguillas, a countryside road on the outskirts of Madrid. From the fence surrounding the cattle farm, I observed with astonishment a mountain of sheep carcasses, one on top of the other, in an almost rotting state. Immediately call 112, which activated the alert.
The first to appear on the scene were agents of the National Police, who verified the veracity of the woman’s story and coordinated with the Corps of Forest Agents of the Community of Madrid and with the Animal Protection District of the Ministry of Environment, Agriculture and Interior. Agents counted a total of 50 dead sheep and many other sick animals inside a moldy warehouse containing a total of 220 sheep. The result of their investigations was the arrest of the farm owner, a 51-year-old Spaniard who specializes in selling livestock and has a criminal record with the Civil Guard for another environmental crime of forest fires. He is now charged with “animal abuse and abandonment of vertebrates resulting in death.” A police note in this regard was sent on Wednesday.
According to the researchers, the rest of the animals showed signs of the disease, as “the sheep showed a lack of veterinary care and follow-up,” according to the memorandum. They point out that sheep that were sick revealed respiratory diseases, lameness, inflammation, infection of the breasts, or deformities of the hooves.
The cattle farm was located in a warehouse and housed about 220 head of cattle. The materials from which the enclosures were made were rusty and broken, while the substrate on which the animals were kept consisted mostly of feces, without having been properly disinfected.
There are no documents
The detained man did not have any kind of documentation or logbook associated with the farm, and stated that the vet had not been at the place since February 2025. The food that was given to the sheep was placed on the floor, and not in a watertight container. The straw was black in some areas, indicating poor storage and could pose a danger to animals when consumed. Likewise, the remains and feathers of a dead bird were found in the feed, with attendant health risks, the police memo warns.
For all these reasons, in September 2025, National Police officers arrested this man on allegations that he was responsible for mistreating animals and abandoning a vertebrate animal, which led to its death as a result of neglecting the necessary veterinary treatments to care for these animals. After his arrest, he was placed at the disposal of the judicial authority.
About The Author
