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An “unrepentant” Mangakino farmer has been jailed and banned from farming animals after being found with hundreds of starving cattle and sheep, some near death, injured or deformed.

Warren Koberstein is 75 and has been a farmer for 40 years. But Rotorua District Court Judge Tony Snell has jailed him for two years and four months and ordered he not own farm animals or be in charge of anyone who looks after farm animals again.

Warren was sentenced on Friday after being convicted of animal cruelty charges in March.

A jury found him guilty of 11 charges laid by the Ministry of Primary Industries.

He was found to have wilfully ill-treated 33 sheep that had to be destroyed to end their pain and distress, and failing to ensure proper and sufficient food for 834 pregnant sheep, 86 cattle and 32 heifers.

Other charges related to sheep that were found cast (stuck on their backs) with their eyes pecked out by hawks, one that had a deformed neck and was not able to eat properly and another that had an injured foot and was moving around the paddock on its knuckle.

Judge Tony says he saw the offending as serious, as it involved hundreds of animals in very poor to extensively poor body condition who suffered over a lengthy time. Despite numerous warnings and previous convictions for similar offending, Warren “buried his head in the sand”.

“You showed little or no insight and are unrepentant.”

Judge Tony gave a prison starting point of two years and 10 months. He discounted the sentence by six months (or 17 per cent), including 5 per cent each for Warren's age and good character and 7 per cent for procedural delays in the case.

He says he could give no discounts for plea, remorse and rehabilitation prospects and did not increase the sentence for Warren’s previous convictions.

What Warren did

Judge Tony detailed the case during sentencing saying the ministry executed a search warrant on July 29, 2019 following a complaint.

Aside from hundreds of sheep and cattle in serious physical condition, inspectors noticed insufficient grass to feed the animals in the coming weeks. In the following days, animals had to be destroyed to end their suffering.

Prosecutor Anna McConachy, who was assisted by Kris Bucher, says Warren was worried about his “bottom-line” and it saw him neglect his stock while following chronic underfeeding and overstocking farming practices.

She suggested to Judge Tony a prison starting point of three-and-a-half years’ prison and indefinite disqualification from farming.

McConachy asked the judge to be cautious about any suggestion Warren had good character.

She says he had a conviction from 2008 for assault against a farm worker, which he unsuccessfully appealed.

Warren was also convicted in 2018 for animal cruelty charges relating to sheep with fly strike brought against him under the Animal Welfare Act.

Warren’s lawyer, Fletcher Pilditch KC, says it was difficult to understand the reasons for Warren’s offending and he still had a lot to offer, including farming knowledge.

He noted Warren and his wife had raised four high-achieving children and Warren had served his community, including being a previous school board chairman and treasurer, and helping workers on his farm.

Judge Tony noted a pre-sentence report writer says Warren still disputed he did anything wrong and underestimated the pain and distress he caused to the animals.

The report writer says Warren disregarded authority, disputed his poor management practices and failed to take responsibility.

“You make a point of expressing your contempt for the Ministry of Primary Industries.”

The judge’s sentence

Judge Tony says he accepted the Crown’s case and says it was unacceptable behaviour.

He says relating to the 33 sheep, it would have taken a considerable time to reach such an extreme emaciated state.

He says Warren’s farming practices showed poor management, a failure to match his feed to what was required, a failure to destock when he realised he did not have enough farm cover and a failure to feed out supplementary feed.

The judge did not accept drought conditions could be blamed, saying farmers always had to adapt to changes in weather conditions.

The final sentence included two years and four months’ jail for the lead representative charge of wilfully ill-treating an animal.

He sentenced Warren to 10 months’ imprisonment on five other charges of ill-treating an animal, six months’ imprisonment on a charge of reckless ill-treatment of an animal, six months on a charge of keeping an animal in unnecessary pain and seven months on each of three representative charges of failing to comply with obligations under the Animal Welfare Act to ensure the physical, health and behaviour needs of the animals were met.

All prison terms were to be served concurrently, meaning his end sentence is one of two years and four months’ jail.

Judge Tony also ordered Warren to pay costs of $15,865.05 to the Ministry of Primary Industries, which included veterinary expenses.

He says given the serious circumstances, he agreed with the Crown that Warren should be indefinitely disqualified from farming all animals.

The only animals he is allowed to keep are family pets at his home.