Animal welfare scandal in Thurgau Police clear former horse farm in Hefenhofen

The farm of the former horse breeder in Hefenhofen TG is being evacuated. The police are on site with a large contingent.

The farm of the horse dealer from Hefenhofen TG who made headlines in 2017 for alleged animal cruelty was evicted on Wednesday, according to the police. In December 2023, the debt enforcement office auctioned off the house and pastureland for CHF 1.83 million.

The reason for the forced sale was the debts of the farmer, who was banned from keeping animals. However, the former horse owner, who is involved in legal proceedings due to an animal welfare case from 2017, refused to leave the farm.

On Wednesday, the horse breeder appeared before the Thurgau High Court. At the same time, the cantonal police carried out the forced eviction of his property in Hefenhofen. This was confirmed by a police spokesperson to the Keystone-SDA news agency.

It was a judicial expulsion. The police have been called in to implement the order. "The premises and property will be inspected and then handed over to the new owner," the spokesperson continued.

Around 90 horses confiscated

The Hefenhofen animal welfare case made headlines across Switzerland in the summer of 2017. Photos of emaciated and dead horses lying in the dirt on the farm of the unruly farmer, who had been in dispute with the authorities for years, circulated in the media. The pictures were allegedly taken by a woman who used to work on the farm and reported the farmer to the authorities.

The pressure from animal rights activists and the media on the authorities increased daily. Eventually they cleared the farm. With the help of the army, they confiscated around 90 horses, among other things. Most of them were later auctioned off.

Evidence did not stand up

In March 2023, the farmer stood before the district court in Arbon. He had to answer to the judges for multiple counts of cruelty to animals and numerous other offenses.

However, the court acquitted the farmer of numerous charges. In the oral reasons for the verdict, it primarily criticized the veterinary office and the public prosecutor's office and their approach to documenting the farm eviction.

Most of the evidence presented by the authorities, with which the public prosecutor's office wanted to put the animal abuser with a criminal record behind bars for more than six years, could not be used, according to the ruling. Even photos of severely neglected horses, which got the case rolling, did not stand up as evidence for the judges.

The public prosecutor's office appealed against the ruling. The case is currently being heard by the Thurgau High Court.

SDA