A 20-year-old Balgowlah Heights resident is contesting multiple animal cruelty charges after allegedly deliberately running over kangaroos with a utility vehicle near Lithgow last July.
Leo Boland has pleaded not guilty to charges including torturing, beating and seriously injuring an animal; recklessly beating and seriously injuring an animal; and failing to disclose the identity of a driver or passenger as required.
Court documents reveal the disturbing allegations stem from a July 19 incident approximately 60 kilometres north of Lithgow, where Boland allegedly used a Holden Colorado ute to chase down and deliberately strike multiple kangaroos, including a joey. Police further allege that one kangaroo’s body was mutilated following the incident.
The case has direct connections to the northern beaches area, with the investigation led by local police after the incriminating Snapchat video came to their attention in September. Boland was subsequently charged on October 18.
In Manly Local Court on Wednesday, the police prosecutor stated that authorities had seized a mobile phone belonging to an unidentified passenger in the vehicle. When questioned on October 4, Boland allegedly refused to reveal the passenger’s identity.
While Boland was absent from Wednesday’s court proceedings at Manly Local Court, Magistrate Daniel Reiss scheduled an August 21 hearing expected to last between three and four hours.
The charges facing the Balgowlah Heights resident are serious, with police documents alleging he caused “prolonged suffering” to the animals and had “the intention of inflicting severe pain, committed a serious act of cruelty.”
Published 5-March-2025
