JEDBURGH, Scotland, Jan. 18 (UPI) -- Two young Scottish men admitted badger baiting Thursday after police found videotape on a social networking site that showed a badger being killed.
Sean Dodds and Kyle Lawrie, both Hawick residents, could be sentenced to as much as three years in prison, The Scotsman reported. They pled guilty in Jedburgh Sheriff's Court.
Badgers live in connected networks of tunnels and burrows called setts. Badger baiting is an old sport in Europe but has been banned in Britain since the early 19th century.
Both Dodds and Lawrie admitted they had dug up a badger sett. Dodds also pleaded guilty to killing an animal, which carries a lesser sentence of six months.
Police got a tip in January 2007 about badger baiting being shown on an Internet site. Investigators found images of dogs killing a badger on Dodds' Bebo site.
Rhona MacLeod, Dodds' lawyer, said her 17-year-old client has some growing up to do.
"He regrets the whole incident," she said. "He is ashamed at what he did. As bizarre as it may sound, he has always been seen as a dog lover."
