Sadistic croc expert jailed over dog killings

A prominent crocodile expert who appeared on ABC will spend the next six years behind bars after admitting to the “sadistic” torture and sexual abuse of more than 42 dogs.

Adam Robert Corden Britton, 51, was sentenced before Darwin Supreme Court on Thursday to 10 years and five months behind bars with a non-parole period of six years.

Britton, who worked as a croc expert with David Attenborough on the BBC as well as National Geographic, was also sentenced for the possession of child abuse material.

It comes two years after Britton’s arrest and almost a year after he was found guilty, but was slammed as “pathetically weak” by Animal Justice Party MLC Emma Hurst.

“These were horrific acts of animal cruelty. There is a well-researched link between violence towards animals and violence towards people,” Ms Hurst said in a statement.

“This man is a danger to other animals and the community. I am relieved to hear his sentence includes time behind bars … but it is not long enough.”

Ms Hurst said Australia’s animal sexual abuse laws were “entirely out of touch” and thatfilm Britton’s “pathetic sentence” did not “reflect the seriousness of the crime”.

The British-born Charles Darwin University zoologist began his campaign of terror in 2014 when he abused two dogs he owned with his wife at their Darwin home.

Agreed facts tendered to court last year reveal Britton went on to use classifieds site Gumtree to source dogs from owners, many of whom were reluctant to sell.

After purchasing the animals, Britton would send pictures of them to the past owners before sexually abusing, torturing and killing 39 of the dogs.

The vile acts took place within a shipping container on Britton’s home as well as at “secluded” locations throughout Darwin’s outer suburbs.

Much of the abuse was filmed by Britton on mobile phones and on cameras placed on tripods, with the video later edited to “black out” identifying features.

From 2020 until his arrest in 2022, Britton used the encrypted social media service Telegram to connect with “like-minded” animal abusers.

A second account, known as Cerberus, was used to upload and disseminate videos made by Britton in which he discussed his “kill count”.

The videos were saved onto Britton’s devices under names relating to the location, breed or name of the animal, including “Mastiff1”, “Pit1” and “NewBlue1”.

According to the facts, Britton would refer to the cruelty as “ZooSadism” and posted to Telegram groups such as “New Wicked Kennel”, which had 15 users.

In an online chat, Britton referred to his “torture room” and what implements he would use, including a bread knife, before adding that: “I can’t stop myself hurting dogs.

“I am going to get another dog to kill tomorrow. I plan to hurt it, a lot. I am ridiculously excited about it,” he said.

Britton’s online activity first raised the attention of police following a report by the Northern Territory (NT) Animal Welfare Branch in 2022.

The agency had reported a video made by Britton and posted to a “gore website” that depicted him sexually abusing, torturing and killing one dog and eight puppies.

The female dog in the video was wearing a Darwin City Council “Great pets start with you” collar, prompting an investigation by NT Police.

In April 2022, NT Police and AFP officers raided Britton’s home and seized 44 items, including computers, cameras, hard drives, weapons and sex toys.

Police also located severed dog limbs in a freezer, a decomposing puppy in a filtration pond, and a severed dog head in a neighbouring property in the search.

Following his arrest and after seeking legal advice, Britton provided his Telegram password to police but declined to participate in an electronic interview.