Man accused of stealing flamingo found guilty

LAS VEGAS (FOX5/Gray News) - The man accused of stealing and injuring a flamingo from the Las Vegas Strip was found guilty by a jury on Monday.

Mitchell Fairbarn, 34, was present in court and appeared emotionless.

His wife and friend were also seen inside the courtroom as the verdict was read.

The jury, made up of eight women and six men, deliberated for several hours. The two alternates appointed were not needed.

Fairbarn faced two counts of animal cruelty, with prosecutors noting in closing arguments that one stems from what happened in the habitat while the second is for what happened in the hotel.

He had originally faced four counts before prosecutors decided to only focus the trial on what happened to Peachy back in March.

Prosecutors Haley Willming and Alex Chen opened with surveillance video, photos and Snapchat clips showing Fairbarn smiling, laughing and grabbing the flamingo by the neck with two friends.

The videos also showed Fairbarn walking to the elevators and the flamingo, identified as Peachy, alone in a hallway.

Fairbairn testified he took Peachy as a drunken “silly pranky joke” after drinking 30-40 beers, denying malicious intent to hurt or kill the bird.

Fairbarn will be sentenced on Dec. 1.