THIS is the moment fish-killer Jamie Watson was caught on CCTV carrying a stolen two-foot Koi Carp.

In pictures released exclusively to the Gazette, drunken Watson, 18, is shown holding the fish minutes after draining and damaging a temporary tank in Colchester Castle Park, suffocating 42 fish before stealing one and making off.

Unemployed Watson - who had downed 11 pints of Fosters before he carried out the bizarre crime - admitted causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal, theft and two counts of criminal damage when he appeared at Colchester Magistrates’ Court.

Magistrates ordered him to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work in 12 months and he must also pay a total of £1,820, including £1,650 in compensation to Colchester Council, which owned the fish and the damaged tank.

Once Watson had drained the tank, he climbed back over the gates and walked through Colchester with another teenager - who has not been charged as part of the police investigation.

Evelyn Hicks, mitigating, told the court Watson was “gutted” to killed so many fish but was too drunk to remember taking the fish.

She added when he sobered up “almost instantaneously” he did not know what to do with the fish, so he decided to leave it on the bonnet of a nearby car.

Experts say the fish had either already suffocated to death before being left on the bonnet or would have soon died.

Officers were alerted to the pair’s whereabouts but when they arrived, both boys ran off. However, officers were able to quickly find them.

Sentencing Watson, magistrates told him: “This was a reckless act and a cruel, stupid act. It does not diminish it in our eyes that you were intoxicated at the time - in fact it exacerbates it.

“The fish suffocated because of a lack of oxygen and that would have been very unpleasant for them.”

Denise Holland, prosecuting, said there had been “widespread outrage” in response to the fish deaths and said: “A lot of the fish are of an age and will be quite difficult to replace.”

She added: “He told police he felt a bit drunk. He left the pub and obtained some chips and decided to walk back to where he was staying but thought it was quicker to go through Castle Park.

“He said he didn’t know how he got to the fish but does remember having one in his arms but could not remember where it came from.”

Evelyn Hicks, mitigating, told the court Watson was “gutted” to have killed so many fish. and had shown “great remorse”.

She added: “He does not go out to maliciously cause criminal damage or kill fish. It was an act of stupidity. He knows the fish are something he would enjoy himself and he knows the local community is outraged at his behaviour.”

Annie Feltham, Colchester councillor responsible for leisure, said she was “saddened and appalled” by the incident and hoped the sentence would bring “closure” to the town. She also thanked council gardeners and rangers for their efforts to rescue the surviving fish.

She added: “I would like to thank all of the residents and businesses who contacted the council with heartfelt offers to help restock the pond.”