A Las Vegas tourist took a live flamingo named Peachy from the Flamingo casino to his hotel room, then told a jury he’d had ‘30 to 40 beers’

Mitchell Fairbarn, a 33-year-old visitor from Ontario, took the stand to explain why he snatched a live flamingo named Peachy from the Flamingo casino earlier this year. The incident occurred in March 2026, when Fairbarn climbed into the four-acre Wildlife Habitat located on the casino grounds. 

As reported by BroBible, he successfully grabbed the 27-year-old bird and carried it back to his hotel room. This heist resulted in Fairbarn facing four counts of felony animal abuse, a situation that has now moved into the courtroom.

During his testimony, Fairbarn admitted he did not intend to harm the animal, though he acknowledged that he caused injuries to the bird during the time it spent in his room. He explained that he was in Las Vegas to attend a construction convention called the Con Expo. 

He reportedly tortured the flamingo 

He told the jury that his goal for the trip was to let loose with friends. Fairbarn estimated that he drank between 30 and 40 beers in the 24-hour period before he climbed into the habitat. He stated, “I thought it was something that we could joke about for the rest of our lives.”

The Flamingo casino is famous for its Wildlife Habitat, which houses a large flock of these pink birds. Peachy is a long-term resident of the exhibit, and prosecutors argue that Fairbarn did more than just steal the animal. They claim he posed for photos with the flamingo and filmed a video in which he “tortured” the creature. Fairbarn entered a not guilty plea, and his defense team is working to argue that the felony charges are too extreme for what happened.

While the legal process continues for Fairbarn, the bird itself is doing fine. Peachy has fully recovered from the injuries sustained during the encounter. This event highlights a shift in how Las Vegas incidents play out. 

People used to believe that what happened in the city stayed there, a slogan popularized by an ad campaign from the early 2000s. That promise felt real back then, especially since social media was just starting and phones were not capable of recording everything. Those days are long gone. If you cause trouble in Las Vegas today, the world will find out about it very quickly.