Charges over bird torture

A 73-year-old NSW woman who allegedly gained the trust of animals with food before taking them home and torturing them has been charged.

Police say the woman was seen grabbing a pelican and bundling it into her boot, slamming it shut on its wing, on April 27 at Tuncurry.

She let the injured animal go as police approached, according to officers, who searched her home and found evidence of animal torture.

The woman was charged and given strict conditional bail to appear at Forster Local Court on May 22.