Justice has been served for Maltese shih tzu Millie after Mark Martinaj was convicted of two counts of animal cruelty at the Ringwood Magistrates Court on Thursday 31 July.
Supporters with posters gathered both inside and outside the court, with many more tuning in to the plea hearing by video link.
Martinaj was initially facing four charges, with two charges of aggravated animal cruelty, alongside an allegation of killing Millie, after he agreed early to plead guilty to the two lesser charges.
Millie’s owners Marcus and Janine Wood attended alongside their two young daughters, supported by family, neighbours and animal lovers who came from near and far.
Escorted to and from the courtroom by police, supporters were quick to throw insults and abuse Martinaj’s way at any opportunity.
The courtroom heard that Martinaj was alerted to Millie and a golden retriever named Brinnie, owned by the Wood family, by CCTV in his backyard and returned home. Martinaj’s Kilsyth property had no fencing or gate to prevent the dogs from entering his yard and proceeding to chase his chickens, potentially responsible for one later seen dead.
Upon arriving home in the morning of December 2024, CCTV footage shows Martinaj pulling out temporary chicken wire, effectively trapping the two dogs and his chickens within his property.
Martinaj is seen swinging and making contact with the two dogs using an indeterminate pole-like instrument at least 16 times on the CCTV footage.
Both dogs paced along the chicken wire looking to escape but were trapped, with Martinaj failing at any point to remove the chicken wire and allow the dogs to leave his property.
Brinnie eventually escaped, returning home and prompting the worried Woods to search for Millie and check their CCTV cameras.
Mr Wood later confronted Martinaj at his home who is reported to have said ‘I’ll buy you one or two, whatever you want.’
Millie was never seen again and Magistrate Meagan Keogh said the victim impact statements effectively communicated the importance of Millie to the family and how much she has been missed, despite inadmissible elements within them from the dropped charges.
Defence barrister Dermot Dann KC said the 40-year-old Martinaj, raised in Albania and who was living in Greece before relocating to Australia, has faced significant “extra-curial punishment” as a result of the case, including vigilante attacks at the home he shares with his partner and two children.
Later in December 2024, Martinaj had one of his vehicles significantly damaged by two hooded intruders, and another vehicle in February 2025 was significantly damaged by a single intruder. On 1 February, Martinaj was subjected to both a significant arson attack on his fence and graffiti, with the words ‘You will die c**t dog killer’ painted on the fence. In April while attending court, Victoria Police were also made aware of a significant threat to Martinaj’s safety.
Martinaj has also been subject to significant abuse on social media, including but not limited to ‘Piece of shit hope someone kills him in jail’, ‘He will burn alive if they don’t do justice for Millie’ and ‘He should be killed and his body disposed of in a garbage disposal.’
Prosecutor Holly Baxter argued that Martinaj’s actions were cruel and callous, seen in the ‘uneccessary’ trapping of the dogs.
“He had multiple options that involved not doing what he did, it was totally out of proportion,” she said.
Ms Baxter argued even if Martinaj was using a broomstick, it is “not hollow” and he “put some force into it”, as well as planning in some capacity to take the course of action he did as he returned home after being alerted to the dog’s presence.
In sentencing, Ms Keogh said Martinaj’s abuse of the dogs was “sustained, vicious, deliberate and callous”.
Ms Keogh said the court was “concerned” about the fact Martinaj trapped and chased the dogs in a “predatory fashion”, especially as the dogs posed “no threat” to him and could have been removed.
Martinaj was ultimately sentenced to two months’ imprisonment and was released on appeal bail, set to face the County Court on 1 December.
