Sadistic soldiers scandalise Australian Army

And a warning: there are some unpleasant descriptions in the following report.

The soldiers' commanding officer is still considering what action to take, if any. Meanwhile the RSL's national President Major-General Bill Crews, says he's appalled by the behaviour, and syas the men should not be allowed to remain in the Army.

Petria Wallace reports.

PETRIA WALLACE: The gruesome details of the case have emerged during a civil trial in the Townsville magistrate's court. On a night early last month, the soldiers repeatedly tortured three-week old kittens, until in excruciating pain they finally died.

It began when one of the soldiers urinated on a kitten and repeatedly dropped it from a height onto a concrete floor. The animal was then dragged behind the back of a trail bike as it sped round and round the soldier's accommodation block.

When they found the kitten was still alive, the men placed it under a four-wheel drive and crushed it to death. The rest of the kittens, found by the drunken soldiers in a storeroom, were one by one doused in petrol and set alight.

The magistrate described how one of the soldiers egged the others on, saying 'Go on, are you weak?'

RSL President Major-General Bill Crews says he's disgusted by the behaviour.

BILL CREWS: Well, I'm horrified and appalled to say the least. There is no explanation for why a person would reasonably do that.

PETRIA WALLACE: And he says the fact that they were intoxicated is no excuse.

BILL CREWS: No, people are always responsible for their own actions. Drinking does not obliterate those responsibilities. They have disgraced the Army through their behaviour. It's as simple as that.

PETRIA WALLACE: And what do you think would be appropriate in this situation?

BILLS CREWS: Well, I certainly wouldn't accept them in my unit, and I'm sure most other unit commanders wouldn't in theirs.

PETRIA WALLACE: The Army won't comment on the future of the men, saying only that 'their commanding officer will consider each of their conduct records and decide on a course of action'.

The Townsville magistrate fined the soldiers $2,000 each, but did not record a conviction. The court has also directed they do 100 hours of community service at the local RSPCA.

But according to the organisation's Queensland head Mark Townend, his staff don't want them.

MARK TOWNEND: Look, normal people don't burn cats alive and don't drag them behind motorbikes. There's a lot more serious problem there than just turning up to the RSPCA and doing some work to make them feel better.

TONY EASTLEY: The RSPCA's CEO in Queensland, Mark Townend speaking there to Petria Wallace.