Press Release “Spiridon II” Hearing: Organizer of the Horrific Transport to Appear in Austrian Court on Friday

Weeks of suffering on the high seas, hundreds of dead cattle, calves born in the most precarious conditions, and ultimately a sale to Libya: Nearly 3,000 cattle from Uruguay fell victim to an unprecedented failure in the international animal trade in the fall of 2025. The Animal Welfare Foundation and The Marker had investigated the case during the transport and made it public. Tomorrow, the Austrian livestock dealer allegedly responsible will appear before the Krems Regional Court as part of a civil lawsuit. The importers of the animals accuse him of fraud.

The cattle from Uruguay—half of which were pregnant heifers—were originally destined for Turkey. Upon arrival, however, they were not allowed to be unloaded from the cargo ship “Spiridon II” because, according to the authorities, nearly 500 of them were not listed on the import list. The Turkish importers attempted to secure their unloading through legal action, but the Turkish court rejected the request. 

Meanwhile, conditions on board were growing increasingly dire: more and more animals were dying, and more and more were giving birth to their calves in knee-deep mud. White sacks were piling up on board. In photos, an animal leg appeared to be sticking out of one of one of them. The strong smell of decay and manure, which even led to protests among the residents of Bandirma, also suggests that animal remains were being stored on board. 

After nearly four weeks off the Turkish coast, the ship finally turned back, then turned off its tracking system for several days, and eventually unloaded the surviving animals in the Libyan city of Benghazi. Upon arrival, the white sacks on the upper deck had disappeared, suggesting that dead animals were dumped into the Mediterranean during the radio silence. We investigated the circumstances together with our partner organisations Tierschutzubund Zürich and The Marker.

Importers Accuse Livestock Dealer of Fraud

The importers hold Christian Klinger, a livestock dealer from the Waldviertel region, and his company, Agro Breeding, responsible for the events. They accuse him of knowingly defrauding them and thereby causing massive financial damage. As a result, he must now appear before the Regional Court in Krems. 

According to the importers, Klinger organized the transport and arranged for the loading of animals not listed on the import manifest. Furthermore, he allegedly delayed the ship’s departure, originally scheduled for July, by approximately two months for unknown reasons. As a result, many of the cattle were no longer fit for transport because their pregnancies were already too far along. Although he was allegedly aware of this, he proceeded with the transport. Furthermore, the importers accuse the livestock dealer of denying a veterinarian hired by them access to the ship during loading in Uruguay and of preventing the importers from checking the animals with an ear tag reader as they boarded the ship.  

The importers claim that they had already made an upfront investment and were therefore unable to back out of the deal. They hold the livestock dealer responsible for the failed import, the suffering of the animals, and the resulting economic losses. As an experienced businessman with a proven track record of familiarity with import and processing procedures in Turkey, he should have been aware of the risks involved in such a transport.

Now the Krems Regional Court must determine whether the fraud charges brought against him are justified.

Animal rights activists see a systemic problem 

“Live animal transport is extremely stressful for animals—even when everything goes according to plan: constant stress from rough seas, extreme crowding, inadequate care, injuries, and deaths are inherent to the system. When this is accompanied by deliberately accepted risks, such as loading unregistered animals, massive animal suffering is inevitable,” says Maria Boada Saña, veterinarian and project manager for ship transport at the Animal Welfare Foundation. 

“Thousands of cattle are also exported from Austria by ship to third countries every year, particularly to Algeria. The accused company has organized such exports from Austria itself in the past. Across the EU, around 3 million animals are exported by ship each year—and serious incidents in which animals suffer or die occur time and again. The tragedy involving the Spiridon II is by no means an isolated case and clearly demonstrates that a ban on the transport of live animals by sea is needed,” adds Ann-Kathrin Freude of The Marker. 

Timeline of events: 

• September 21, 2025: The livestock vessel “Spiridon II” sets sail from Montevideo, Uruguay, with 2,901 head of cattle on board. Destination: Bandirma, Turkey. About half of the animals on board are pregnant heifers. 
• October 22, 2025: The voyage takes about ten days longer than usual, and the ship docks in Turkey after 30 days. One day earlier, the importers receive the import documents from Agro Breeding and submit them to the veterinary office and customs via a customs broker. The authorities inspect the ship the same day and find that 2,697 cattle are identifiable and selected for import, 146 cattle are unidentifiable (no ear tags), 469 cattle (with legible ear tags) are not selected for import, 140 cattle gave birth during the voyage (though only 50 calves were found on the ship, 90 remained unaccounted for), and 58 cattle died prior to the inspection.
• October 23, 2025: The Special Veterinary Inspection Office decides that the animals may not be disembarked. An importer then files a complaint against this decision and demands that at least the animals listed for import be unloaded. 
• October 23 to November 14, 2025: The ship is anchored off the Turkish coast. On November 9, it is allowed to dock to load feed. Conditions on board continue to deteriorate, and more animals die. Residents complain about flies and a foul odour in the port area. 
• November 13, 2025: The importer’s appeal is rejected by the Balikesir Administrative Court. 
• November 14, 2025: The “Spiridon II” leaves Turkey with the animals on board, initially stating Uruguay as its destination.
• November 18-21, 2025: Off the coast of Tunisia, the vessel suddenly disappears from radar and reappears days later in the opposite direction, off the coast of Libya.
• November 22–24, 2025: The surviving animals are unloaded in Libya and sold after 2 months on board. The ship then leaves the port of Benghazi and initially sets a course for Alexandria, Egypt, and later for Beirut, Lebanon.
• November 27, 2025: The “Spiridon II” arrives at the port of Beirut. The vessel is empty upon arrival. 
• March 23, 2026: ORF is the first to report on its “ZIB2” program that the company Agro Breeding GmbH from Jagenbach in the Waldviertel region organized the transport. Videos from inside the ship show immeasurable animal suffering: dead, injured, and severely soiled animals, knee-deep manure, and piles of weakened, newborn calves.  
• June 12, 2026: The head of Agro Breeding GmbH, Christian Klinger, is due to appear before the Krems Regional Court. The importers from Turkey accuse him of fraud.

Download the press release here.