Animal Rising has described the removal of the lambs from the estate as a rescue (Photo: Animal Rising)
Three Animal Rising activists accused of taking lambs from the King’s Sandringham estate have told a court they believed Charles III would have consented to their actions.
Sarah Foy, 23, from Derbyshire, Rose Patterson, 34, from London, and Rosa Sharkey, 23, from Brighton are standing trial at Norwich Crown Court charged with theft. All three deny the charges.
The case relates to an incident at a farm on the Sandringham estate in Norfolk on 24 May 2023.
Animal Rising said its members entered the farm at around 8pm and removed three lambs which the group claimed were destined for slaughter.
Video footage released by the activists showed the women carrying lambs from a field, crossing a perimeter tape and placing the animals into a van.
The lambs were later named Sammy, Sunny and Sooty by the activists.
The court heard that the women handed themselves in at Windsor police station the following day after saying they had taken the animals from the King’s estate.
Before doing so, they held a demonstration in Windsor carrying placards with photographs of the lambs and slogans including “I rescued the King's sheep” and “This is how we love animals”.
The farm estimated the value of the three lambs at between ÂŁ400 and ÂŁ500.
Jurors were told the prosecution must prove that the defendants appropriated property belonging to another person, intended to permanently deprive the owner of it and acted dishonestly.
The women dispute that their actions were dishonest.
The court heard that each defendant maintains they openly sought to rescue the animals and believed they could not return them because they would be subjected to farming practices they considered harmful.
Jurors were also told the women believed Charles III would have consented to the lambs being removed.
The prosecution, however, said there was “no lawful reason to take the lambs and the women knew that, and that is dishonest”.
Animal Rising has described the removal of the animals as a rescue and said after the 2023 action that it wanted to spark discussion about “our relationship with other animals and nature”.
The trial continues at Norwich Crown Court.