Two London residents are on trial accused of taking part in a break-in at a dog breeding facility in Cambridgeshire, allegedly removing 20 Beagle puppies intended for animal testing.
Ben Newman, 35, from Hackney, told police he “rescued as many beautiful Beagle puppies as I could from a life of hell” following the December 2022 incident at MBR Acres. He is among 18 defendants linked to the alleged burglary carried out by activists from Animal Rising, formerly Animal Rebellion. Nathan McGovern, 26, from Lewisham, Hannah Hunt, 26, from Brighton, Eben Lazarus, 25, also from Brighton, and Lewis Elliott, 32, from Cumbria, are the first group to face a jury at Cambridge Crown Court, with other defendants scheduled for later trials.
Footage presented to jurors showed activists in pink t-shirts reading “What would you do if this was your dog?” handling puppies, lifting them over fences, and kissing them as they removed them from cages. Videos recorded inside the facility showed dogs whimpering and pressing against metal cages while activists climbed in to extract them.
Two of the 20 dogs were recovered at the scene, but 18 were never returned. Prosecutor Mitchell Cohen described the incident as an “organised, planned operation.”
The court heard that the offence of burglary under Section 9 of the Theft Act 1968 requires the prosecution to prove the defendants entered as trespassers and intended to “dishonestly appropriate goods belonging to others which they do not intend to return.” Mr Cohen stressed that, while it may be uncomfortable to think of dogs as goods, “they are, in this case, goods. Animate objects, of course, dogs that must be cared for, of course, but they are the trading commodity of MBR Acres, a breeding facility.”
Footage showed activists arriving in a convoy of hire cars in the early hours of December 20, using ladders to scale fences topped with barbed wire. Security camera recordings captured interactions between activists and staff, including claims that the dogs were “going to be killed” and “brought up to die in animal testing.”
All five defendants in this initial trial were arrested at the scene. Lazarus, Elliott, and McGovern made no comment under questioning. Newman, found with pink wire-cutters, gave a prepared statement asserting that his actions were lawful. Hunt also largely remained silent, telling authorities, “If you see what conditions they live in… when you smell their faeces… they are brought up to die in animal testing.”
Prosecutors indicated that the defence might seek to present the trial as a “political platform,” but emphasized that the law does not permit individuals to enter a property without permission and remove items, regardless of their beliefs. “The defendants attended as trespassers knowing they were not invited, knowing they were not welcome, and having entered as trespassers in the early hours of the morning, took property, 20 Beagles belonging to MBR Acres, and intended they would never be returned,” Mr Cohen said.
Another 13 defendants are scheduled for separate trials at a later date.
