Mallorca man sent to jail for killing his horse after race

A JUDGE has sent a 41 year old man from Manacor, Mallorca, to prison on Wednesday October 21 for beating his racehorse to death in 2012.

The man was convicted after he beat his horse to death with a metal bar and the judgement marks the first time that anyone has received a jail term for abusing an animal in Spain.

Eugenio Sanchez is a resident of Manocar, and his eight month sentence will be carried out in Palma penitentiary. His request to have the jail sentence commuted to community service was denied by the court.

On handing down the sentence the judge said, “The atrocious death of this racehorse inside his own stall at the racetrack constitutes an aberration in the 21st century.”

Sanchez’s horse had just been disqualified from a trotters race when his owner turned on the animal on December 30 2012.

Trotting is popular in Mallorca. Sanchez’s horse lost pace and broke into a gallop which led to its disqualification.

It had previously won 24 out of 112 races and earned its two owners almost €6,000 in prize money.

The same judge sentenced another man to one year in prison in May for starving his dog to death.