Nevada Jury Convicts Canadian Tourist of Flamingo Cruelty

A Canadian tourist faces a potential prison sentence after a Nevada jury found him guilty of animal cruelty for removing a flamingo named Peachy from its enclosure at a Las Vegas hotel and injuring the bird during an incident in March. Mitchell Fairbarn was convicted Monday of felony and misdemeanor charges stemming from the incident at the Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel.

According to reports from NBC News, ABC News and Arizona's Family, the jury found Fairbarn guilty after several hours of deliberations. The 34-year-old Canadian from Ontario faces up to four years in prison for the felony conviction and an additional six months in jail for the misdemeanor. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for Dec. 1.

Prosecutors argued that Fairbarn deliberately caused physical pain to Peachy, a 27-year-old Chilean flamingo, when he removed the bird from its habitat on March 3 and carried it to his hotel room. Surveillance footage presented during the trial showed him handling the flamingo in an elevator and moving through a hotel hallway with the bird.

Prosecutors characterized the incident as a "drunken and malicious act."

Authorities said hotel security contacted Las Vegas police after reporting that the flamingo had been taken. When Peachy was found, the bird had lost seven to eight feathers, had blood on its feathers and showed injuries to its wings. Prosecutors also pointed to feathers found on the hotel floor and video showing the bird squawking while Fairbarn handled it.

Footage presented in court included Snapchat clips showing Fairbarn with two friends, smiling, laughing and grabbing the flamingo by the neck. Other recordings showed him walking toward the elevators and Peachy alone in a hallway.

Peachy's veterinarian, Tiffany Moore, medical director of Lone Mountain Animal Hospital, said the flamingo had recovered reasonably well physically but displayed increased anxiety during evaluations. The bird's behavioral changes remained a concern following the incident.

Defense attorney Josh Tomsheck acknowledged that his client had acted recklessly but argued that intoxication, rather than an intention to injure the animal, drove his actions. He described taking the flamingo as "dumb" and "fueled by drunkenness."

Tomsheck told jurors that Fairbarn regretted his conduct and emphasized that the tourist should never have entered the habitat or removed the bird.

"He should not have done that, should not have gone into the habitat, shouldn’t have touched a bird, shouldn’t have taken Peachy inside," Tomsheck said.

The defense maintained that Fairbarn did not intend to harm or kill Peachy. Fairbarn testified that he had consumed 30 to 40 beers before taking the bird, describing the incident as a "silly pranky joke."

In addressing his client's decisions, Tomsheck said, "The truth is, Mitch was drunk. Mitch was stupid. He made bad decisions."

The felony charge centered on whether Fairbarn willfully caused the bird physical pain. Prosecutors also presented evidence relating to his actions inside the habitat and the subsequent handling of Peachy at the hotel.

Clark County prosecutor Haley Willming acknowledged that Fairbarn had experienced serious personal consequences while awaiting trial, including death threats and an inability to leave the United States when his father died. She argued that those consequences followed from his own conduct.

"None of that would have happened had he not done what he did, had he not made the choices he made," Willming said.

Fairbarn appeared in court during the proceedings with his head lowered and his hands covering his eyes, according to NBC News. After the verdict, he left the courtroom with his wife and declined to comment, ABC News reported.

Nevada animal rights advocate John Waudby, who recently helped strengthen the state's animal cruelty laws, welcomed the verdict as accountability for the treatment of the bird.

"I hope this sends a message to anybody else that wants to mess with our animals, that you’re not going to do it in Nevada," Waudby said outside the courtroom.

Fairbarn's sentencing hearing remains scheduled for Dec. 1, when the court is expected to determine the penalties for the two convictions.