Nigel Farage’s Reform UK candidate was fined £2,000 for kicking dog

06 June 2024 , 16:01

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Garry Sutherland (right) was fined nearly £2,000 for kicking a dog (Image: Facebook)

A Reform UK candidate for Nigel Farage was once slapped with a £2,000 fine for kicking a dog and is banned from keeping the animals as pets.

Garry Sutherland, the party's candidate for Exmouth and Exeter East, was found guilty of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal in August 2023, following a trial at Weymouth Magistrates' Court. The court heard how Sutherland kicked the dog in the village of Chideock, west Dorset, on July 24, 2022.

Legal documents seen by the Mirror showed Sutherland was banned from owning a dog for two years and was ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work within the next 12 months. The same court listing said Sutherland pleaded not guilty on November 3, 2022 before ultimately being found guilty.

A Reform UK spokesperson confirmed to the Mirror that Sutherland had kicked the dog but claims that it was to stop it from attacking people.

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In a March 31 post shared on X, formerly Twitter, Sutherland addressed his conviction that was covered on MailOnline. He said: "A more accurate headline would be 'former bomb disposal officer saves family from dog attack.' But we mustn't let the truth get in the way of electioneering. Eh?"

Garry Sutherland is the Reform UK candidate for Exmouth and Exeter East (Facebook)

Sutherland this week came under renewed scrutiny online with posts about his conviction going viral with tens of thousands of views on X. One post, reportedly showing Sutherland's campaign X page had been locked, was viewed 24,000 times alone.

The account "Brexit Buster" posted: "Looks like convicted dog abuser and Reform UK Ltd prospective parliamentary candidate Garry Sutherland has run for cover after the exposure of his recent court case and sentencing. Fines and costs totalling nearly £2,000, banned from keeping a dog, 200 hours community service."

The Mirror found Sutherland previously travelled to London to hear former Tory MP Andrew Bridgen link excess deaths to vaccinations against COVID 19. His constituency account also retweeted vaccine sceptic posts on X. Sutherland previously described himself as a "husband, father and patriot, who served as a bomb disposal officer in the British Army,” according to the Exmouth Journal.

Mike Taylor