Teenager charged with torturing and killing 20 kangaroos

Youngster alleged to have massacred animals by running over them in utility vehicle

The kangaroos were found on Sunday morning (WIRES)

An Australian teenager has been charged with killing 20 kangaroos during an hour-long massacre in which he is said to have slaughtered the animals by running them over in a utility vehicle.

Several joeys were among the dead following the bloodbath in the New South Wales town of Tura Beach.

Bodies were left strewn across suburban streets. Several kangaroos had been hit so hard they had been thrown into nearby gardens. Some were found with broken bones protruding through their skin and fur.

Three babies had to be rescued from the pouches of their dead mothers.

“It was just pure, senseless slaughter,” Janine Gibson, from the Wildlife Information, Rescue and Education Service, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. “People were horrified.”

The charged youngster, who has not been named, will now appear in court in November accused of cruelty offences, torture and causing the deaths of animals during the incident on Saturday night.

Inspector Peter Volf said: “We take incidents such as these very seriously and anyone who engages in activities such as these will face the full brunt of the law.”

Under New South Wales law, anyone convicted of animal cruelty faces up to five years in jail and a fine of A$22,000 (£12,000).