Lobster 'liberated' from restaurant by animal rights activist would have died instantly when she threw it back in sea, says furious owner

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A lobster that was thrown into the sea by an animal rights activist is likely to have died as soon as it hit the cold water - and its tank mate may have died from loneliness just days later, a furious restaurateur has said.

Eco-warrior Emma Smart, 47, stormed into Catch at the Old Fish Market in Weymouth, Dorset, and 'freed' the crustacean which she believed was going to be eaten.

However owner Sean Cooper said the two crustaceans were pets kept by the Michelin Guide restaurant, affectionately named Ronnie and Reggie.

Though neither animal was due to be on the menu, Smart rushed into the restaurant and grabbed one of the animals from the warm water tank before throwing it into the harbour 'like a cricket ball'.

Mr Cooper called marine biologist Smart 'ignorant' and said the sudden change in water temperature would have killed the lobster.

Its companion died soon after, possibly due to loneliness after the loss of its tankmate.

Smart admitted one count of causing criminal damage to the animal when she appeared at Bournemouth Crown Court. 

She was given a three-year restraining order, banning her from being within ten metres of the restaurant.

Mr Cooper said he was 'deeply disappointed' with the outcome of the case.

The restaurateur, who opened the posh harbourside restaurant in 2021, said the outcome was 'very hard to accept'.

On the evening of April 10 last year, Smart was seen lurking outside the Catch at the Old Fish Market venue, with an eye on the warm water tank.

Video footage captured the moment the eco-warrior tussled with a member of staff to get to the tank. 

When a waitress opened the front door to allow two customers to leave the 47-year-old barged in and told her she was 'taking the lobster' as it 'needed to be free.'

Losing their grip, the loyal staff member pushed Smart away and jumped between the lobster and intruder - as they keep their arms raised against the marine biologist, who wore a rainbow-coloured jumper.

Pushing her opponent away with her right arm, Smart plunged her left hand into the tank and grabbed one of the crayfish before storming out of the restaurant - beast in hand.

She then marched outside and threw it into the harbour like 'a cricket ball'.  

Mr Cooper said the CCTV footage of the incident was unambiguous and that he had told the police and CPS he had wanted the book thrown at Smart.

Although she was initially charged with causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal, theft and assault, she was allowed to plea to the lesser count of criminal damage without Mr Cooper having a say in it.

She was given an eight-month conditional discharge and banned from going within ten metres of the restaurant for the next three years.

Mr Cooper revealed the victim was in fact a crayfish, a species usually found in the warmer waters of the Mediterranean and it was kept in a tank in the restaurant for educational purpose.

It was one of two crayfish, affectionately named Ronnie and Reggie, who were kept as pets. Although it was not known which one.

Mr Cooper hit out at the decision to accept a plea to a lesser charge, saying: 'The video evidence was unambiguous, the victim's statement was compelling, and the CPS had no hesitation in authorising charges.

'To have those charges effectively dropped in favour of a minor plea is very hard to accept.'

Mr Cooper said he did not support a change to the charges and that he was supposed to have a meeting with the police to discuss it further which never materialised.

He said: 'What makes this worse is how it was handled.

'I made clear I disagreed with the approach and arranged to meet the officer.

'That meeting never happened. No contact was made.

'The next thing we knew, the outcome was being reported in the press.

'We're glad the public can now see clearly what happened that night - the forced entry, the assault on a young female member of staff and the deliberate theft of the crayfish.

'The travesty of the whole thing is that the animal will have died the second it hit the water.

'The force with which Emma Smart threw the animal into the harbour would almost certainly have killed it.

'She has thrown it in an overarm throw, like a cricket ball. There was no gentle release, she has thrown it with great force.

'The temperature in the tank is vastly different from in the harbour. The sudden change in water temperature alone, that thermal shock will have killed that animal.

'It's the aggravated nature of this that makes it so distressing.

'I don't know enough about animals, but the other crayfish died relatively soon after - I don't know if the loss of its mate had an impact on that.

'They were an unusual species, more commonly found in the Mediterranean, that's why it was in the tank.

'The reason we have the tank is to attract families into a fishmongers and give them a point of interest to learn more.'

It was not the first time Smart, a marine biologist, had targeted Catch.

In 2022, the police were called when she tried to barge her way in to speak to veteran broadcaster and naturalist Sir David Attenborough, who was dining there after filming with a production crew.

She was calling on Sir David to support climate activists in prison and refused to leave when asked.

Mr Cooper said Catch was a world-leading restaurant for sustainable fish and seafood sourcing and that Smart's campaign against it was 'as misguided as it is damaging.'

He added: 'What's particularly frustrating is that Emma Smart is directing her anger at entirely the wrong target. Weymouth's fishing fleet is recognised globally for the way it operates.

'Catch, working alongside Weyfish, has been identified by the Sustainable Restaurant Association as the world-leading restaurant for sustainable fish and seafood sourcing.

'The values she claims to hold are, in large part, the values we live by. Her campaign against us is as misguided as it is damaging.'

Smart went to the restaurant on the evening of April 10 last year.

Ben Thompson, prosecuting, told Bournemouth Crown Court: 'At 9pm the defendant was waiting outside the entrance of the restaurant.

'When the guests are leaving she comes in and a member of staff attempts to push her out of the property.

'Eventually Ms Smart makes her way towards the tank that holds the crayfish, which is actually a lobster.

'It had belonged to the restaurant owner Mr Cooper for two-and-a-half years and was not for sale but instead for educational reasons when children visit.

'Ms Smart reached into the fish tank and took the lobster.

'Multiple members of staff tried to stop her but she left and leaned over a wall before placing it in the harbour, with the lobster not seen again.'

Defending, Kitan Ososami said Ms Smart made an 'impulsive' decision to take the lobster after seeing it in the tank.

She said: 'She acted on impulse. She cares very deeply about animals and marine welfare and this was the driving factor behind her committing this offence.'

Smart, previously of Rodwell Street, Weymouth, now lives in West Wales.

Her Honour Judge Susan Evans said: 'The lobster was not there for consumption. It was there for educational purposes.

'You were determined to take it from the tank and you placed it in the harbour.

'It was a deeply misguided thing to have done.

'It was not a good thing for the lobster at all and whether or not it survived, we don't know.'