A Royal Marine bit the head off a pigeon during an all-day drinking session, a court has heard.
Commando Adam Karmali, 33, sunk his teeth into the bird as he drank lager with friends near the banks of the River Taff in Bute Park, Cardiff.
He was caught after police carried out forensic tests on the headless pigeon’s body – and discovered his DNA on its neck.
Now, the soldier has been handed a 12-month community order after admitting a charge of ‘not taking all reasonable steps to ensure the needs of an animal he was responsible for were met’.
Karmali, who lives in Wimborne, Dorset, had been visiting the Welsh capital with friends when he captured the pigeon in the park, Cardiff Magistrates’ Court heard.
He then posed for pictures with the live bird’s head in his mouth, before biting it off and spitting it on to the ground.
A female passerby was so horrified that she phoned police, who arrived to find the headless pigeon lying in the grass, the court heard.
Officers later carried out forensic tests on the pigeon – and discovered Karmali’s DNA on teethmarks around the bird’s neck.
Mike Curry, prosecuting, said: ‘This was a sickening offence carried out while drunk.
‘Karmali captured a pigeon and put it in his mouth and as the group took pictures he bit its head off.
‘A witness was so appalled police were contacted, the remains were recovered and a DNA match was discovered which led him to being arrested.’
When interviewed by police, Karmali told officers he had drunk around 20 cans of lager and had thought it was a ‘prank’ at the time.
‘Sickening offence’: Karmali (left) sunk his teeth into the bird (file picture, right) as he drank lager with friends near the banks of the River Taff in Bute Park, Cardiff. He was caught after police discovered his DNA on its body
Monique McKevitt, defending, said that biting the head off a pigeon was ‘clearly an unacceptable and repulsive act’.
But she said that Karmali faced being expelled out of the forces if he was given a prison sentence for the crime.
‘There will be internal disciplinary procedures not only for the act itself but for bringing the Royal Marines reputation into disrepute,’ she said.
Sentenced: After capturing the pigeon in the park, the soldier posed for photos with the live bird’s head, before biting it off and spitting it on to the ground. Above, Karmali is pictured with a shark in Australia two years ago
‘He would never normally behave that way and he feels extreme remorse and shame.’
Magistrates’ panel chairman Robert Cozens told Karmali that biting the head off a pigeon was punishable by prison.
However, he agreed that the Commando should be spared jail because it would end his career.
Sentencing Karmali, Mr Cozens told him: ‘We have taken great consideration over this and we consider the serious and pretty awful offence as having passed the custody threshold.
Guilty: He has now been handed a 12-month community order and told to complete 150 hours’ unpaid work
‘However, we have heard from your Captain you have a good military record and that this is out of character.
‘Because of your early guilty plea and the remorse you have shown we have brought your sentence down a level.’
Karmali was also ordered to complete 150 hours’ unpaid work.
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A MUM has had to keep her two young children away from playing in their back yard because it is being plagued by a flock of pigeons.
Jane Turner, 40, said the pigeons had taken up residence on the roofs of terraced houses in Skipton Road, Colne, after a derelict mill was demolished.
A flock of ‘30 to 40’ birds had been living in Oak Mill, but after it was demolished in December last year they moved across the road to the roofs of the houses.
Mrs Turner said: “The pigeons are on the roofs of around three houses in Skipton Road. It’s a total nightmare. The back yard and windows are covered in pigeon muck — it’s a massive health hazard.
“I have two young children under four but I can’t let them out the back because of this. It’s been like this for about six months and we don’t know what else to do now.
“The council have said it is not their problem, but they gave approval for the demolition of the mill. Now we’ve been left with the pigeons.”
Pendle Council fought an 18-month battle to get the eyesore mill demolished, which ending with the authority taking the Isle of Man company that owns the building to court.
Mrs Turner said: “We have had to get a report on the problem from an environmental company, but it looks like it is going to cost thousands to sort it out. We can’t find that sort of money.”
Philip Mousdale, deputy chief executive, said: “We sympathise with Ms Turner and her neighbours.
“However, the council does not have any responsibility or duty of care for pigeons as part of the planning process.”
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
The Town of Pictou’s efforts to clean up for next week’s royal visit have some locals worried they’re killing pigeons.
The town’s old post office has been derelict for years and pigeons roost in it. Recently, the windows were mostly boarded up.
Rachelle Gaudet said the situation was bleak. “An awful lot of pigeons. Some of them are trapped in the building [and] there’s a lot of them hanging around trying to get in,” she said.
She learned of the situation while walking past the building. She heard a racket as birds tried to get in or out. Gaudet said a broken window in the front is too small.
“We’re expecting the royal visit next week and so I would assume they boarded up all the windows so it wasn’t an eyesore,” she said. “Even if they just took a couple [of boards] down from the back so they could get in and out.”
Others took to Twitter to raise the alarm.
“In my opinion it was done to perk up the town for the royal visit,” said Charlene Steeves. “That’s all well and good but you can’t do that at the expense of these animals.”
Steeves said the building was boarded up Friday. The town said it was done Monday after complaints from the public.
Joe Hawes, mayor of Pictou, said the flap over the pigeons was misplaced. The town boarded up the windows after vandals smashed the glass. It’s a privately owned building, so the town will charge the owner for the work.
“They weren’t trying to kill the pigeons or harm them,” he said.
“The town crews went in and boarded up the windows and painted them black. They didn’t know that there was pigeons inside. They had no idea.”
When they figured out the pigeons were having problems, the crews returned and cut holes in the new plywood to grant avian access.
“Well, they can fly out now. There’s holes in there,” Hawes said. “They’re not in there shooting them or trapping them. It’s really much ado about nothing.”
He was asked about reports birds were flying straight into the walls. “That I don’t know. Birds are pretty intelligent. If there’s a hole there to get out, they’ll get out.”
Thursday morning more holes were added to open access for the birds on all floors.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
A WOMAN from West Green says she can no longer use her back garden because of the deluge of droppings that constantly rain down from pigeons roosting in a tree behind it.
Donna Lucas, 33, has had problems with the troublesome tree for six years – particularly the bothersome birds that punctuate “every five centimetres” of her garden with their mess.
Ms Lucas and her neighbours on Westfield Road have been trying for years to get the council to properly maintain the tree, which stands on land the authority owns behind her garden, blocks out light and “looks tatty”.
For three years Ms Lucas has been asking the council to prevent the pigeons from roosting in the oak, which last year the authority protected with a tree preservation order.
But it wasn’t until last Tuesday that any action was taken.
“The council have just hung some silver foil strands from the tree in the hope it will put the birds off from roosting there and that’s it,” she said of the measures the council has taken to stop the pigeons.
“We can’t use our garden. We don’t use it. Last year we spent quite a bit of money on it; putting in a new patio. It’s trashed.
“We only use the garden to go to and from the shed.”
In addition to the pigeon problem Ms Lucas explained that tree branches often fall into her garden, one of which “almost hit a neighbour’s grandchild”, and that people fly-tip in the area.
She said: “It’s a deluge of pigeon poo. My garden furniture is ruined. I half painted the shed last year and gave up.
“You can’t sit out there for fear of being hit.”
And the silver foil preventative measures put in the tree have failed – as the tree is as popular as ever with the birds.
Ms Lucas said: “There are lots of them up there. What the council has done looks like Christmas decorations. It’s a joke.
“The two guys who knocked on Tuesday from the council’s contractor were laughing. They were embarrassed.
“They said they didn’t want anyone to see them putting it up. And they were embarrassed that the council hadn’t contacted me to tell me what they were doing.”
A council spokesman explained that the strips of foil are designed to act as a “bird repellent”.
He added: “This is the only solution open to the council because we can’t harm a legally protected tree.
“We pruned the tree by 25 per cent in 2012 and, because it is protected by a tree preservation order (TPO) we will be unable to prune it again until the winter of 2016.
“We considered using a bird repellent gel on the tree but were unable to do this, again due to the TPO, because it would damage the tree.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
John Wilkinson, who was jailed for six weeks for breaching an ASBO restricting his habit of feeding pigeons, is expected to be released before the weekend after serving half his sentence.
The Visitor campaigned to ‘Free the Morecambe Birdman’ believing his punishment did not fit the crime.
We also said sending a man to prison for feeding birds was an unnecessary waste of taxpayers’ money and unlikely to make a difference to his long-term behaviour.
We also called for active and meaningful support for those in Morecambe who have suffered years of misery as a direct result of his bird feeding activities.
Neighbours have complained for years about the noise, nuisance and smell caused by Wilkinson’s habit of feeding pigeons at his home on Cavendish Road in the West End of Morecambe.
Our campaign was sparked after angry Visitor readers bombarded social media with messages calling for Wilkinson, who is being held in HM Preston prison, to be released.
Rita Patton, a friend of Wilkinson’s who started her own campaign on Facebook and organised a public bird feeding in Morecambe to show support, said: “I’m proud of The Visitor. You’ve done things in the right way.
“Apparently John is doing really well although he’s a little nervous by all the attention, because he’s seen all the press and TV coverage.
“I’m going to have a meeting with him and (charity) West End Impact when he gets out, to explain to him why we started the campaign.
“I hope he will go back to feeding the birds, but a little more responsibly.”
Mrs Patton has collected £100 in donations, which she will hand over to Wilkinson once he is freed.
Meanwhile David Morris MP has written to the Secretary of State for Justice, Chris Grayling, to ask if procedures were followed correctly in the case of Wilkinson.
“This is a really sad case,” said Mr Morris.
“I pass Mr. Wilkinson’s house regularly and I am sure it must be frustrating for neighbours to have so many pigeons flying past all of the time.”
Wilkinson was sent to jail after feeding pigeons approximately 40kg of bird seed each day, along with vast quantities of food such as pizzas, pasta, apples and processed ready-meals, which he was forbidden from doing under the terms of his ASBO.
He will be released under legal guidelines which allow people jailed for less than a year to be freed after serving just half their sentence.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
A home in Tucson is being cleaned out by animal control officials after they discovered the two residents living with more than 140 pigeons.
The officers said they found at least 15 to 20 nests inside the house, in addition to rodents, insects and the pigeons themselves.
Neighbors said the residents encouraged the birds to enter the home by feeding them and leaving the door open. One neighbor said there were broken windows that the birds flew in and out of.
The property is long-term mental health housing with multiple units. According to a police report, City Code Enforcement workers checked on the home on May 30, but the residents didn’t let them in. They came back five days later with a search warrant.
One neighbor described the owner of the property as a “slum lord.” A representative of the owner, who cooks for the residents, agreed to let officials inside.
In total, officials said there were 143 pigeons found in the home and more than 100 more living outside. Based on the findings, three more units will need work, which will uproot 6 more residents.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
