FIRECREST TOURS : Guided Birdwatching & Wildlife Days

  Two men have been banned from owning or keeping dogs for three years under new legislative powers designed to target poachers. On 21 February2023, Colchester magistrates handed David Hilden and Tyron Young disqualification orders under section 66 of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 in what is believed to be a national first, after the pair each admitted a charge of daytime trespass in pursuit of game. Magistrates made the orders after hearing both men had travelled to the Saffron Walden area from south London with dogs which were to be used to poach game. Investigating officer PC Nigel Wright, of the Rural Engagement Team, said after the hearing:  “The poaching of wild animals is extremely cruel but it can also cause a lot of damage to crops and farmland, which is very costly for the land owner or farmer. Dogs are integral to poaching and I am delighted that the magistrates were able to use this new legislation to deprive these two poac...

As a result of an intelligence lead operation, Wildlife Crime Officers successfully secured the conviction of four men involved in hare coursing in Stirling and Borders area.  On Monday, 29 April 2020, a silver Subaru Forester was stopped by police officers near to Kippen roundabout, Stirling.  Steven Brown (31), William McPhee (53), William McPhee (31), and Alexander McAllister (47) were arrested and charged with hare coursing offences throughout Stirling and the Borders. The car and dogs were seized. The men were sentenced at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Monday, 6 February, 2023. Hare coursing is a wildlife crime where dogs such as sight hounds namely lurcher type dogs are used to illegally chase, catch, injure and kill hares.  All were found guilty which resulted in a driving ban, disqualification from owning dogs, community payback order and compensation order totalling 720 hours and £1,300. Source: Police Scotland The post Four men sentenced following h...

  A man who gave a false name to a Fisheries Enforcement Officer in a bid to escape prosecution has been fined a total of £1,455 at Newport Magistrates Court. In May 2022, a Natural Resources Wales Enforcement Officer was undertaking a routine patrol at Llyn Clywedog Reservoir near Llanidloes, when he spotted Robert Simpson, of Aberbargoed, Caerphilly, fishing from a boat. When Mr Simpson returned to shore, he was asked to produce his rod licence, he replied that he had left his licence at home and told the officer his name was Stephen Fisher. The officer conducted a rod licence check and found there was no valid licence in the name of Stephen Fisher at the address supplied by Mr Simpson. Once the officer explained that he could seize the fishing equipment and arrest Mr Simpson if he did not give his correct details, he provided his correct name and address. Under caution Mr Simpson admitted to using a friend’s details for licence checks. Having failed...

Warwickshire Hunt has been served with a three-year notice from police amid concerns about dangers on roads. Warwickshire Rural Crime Team has revealed that it served Community Protection Notice (CPN) to Warwickshire Hunt Limited. This notice will be in place for three years and, if conditions are breached, it could lead to criminal action. The Rural Crime Team said the CPN has been served after Warwickshire Hunt was given a warning notice in back in May about antisocial use of the county road network. This initial warning appears to have been ignored as the team said that they continue to see ‘unreasonable and dangerous’ use of the roads. The CPN imposed conditions to tackle this, under the scope of the Anti-Social Behaviour Crime and Policing Act 2014. The conditions are: Warwickshire Hunt to give advance notice of events, and details of the times and locations of road crossing points. There are also requirements for them to inform police who will control dogs during the event...

A man has been fined more than £1000 after a joint investigation by Rural Crime teams uncovered messages which showed him bragging and admitting to the illegal hunting of foxes. The investigation saw John Oliver Finnegan, aged 37 and of Northwich in Cheshire, plead guilty at Cheltenham Magistrates’ Court on 6th December 2022 to hunting a wild mammal with dogs. Finnegan, who was the Huntsman for a group based in Leicestershire, gave the guilty plea on the first day of a trial and was ordered to pay £1331 within 28 days after being convicted under the Hunting Act of 2004. On the afternoon of Friday 7 January, police were contacted as local hunt monitors had seen a group illegally hunting on land in the village of Hartpury. The group were filmed on a digital camcorder and this showed Finnegan taking a number of hounds into woodland whilst the rest of the hunt stayed around the perimeter. The hounds were then seen running out of the woodland while loudly and aggressively barking....

  Two men were caught illegally digging at an active badger sett near Wrexham. A member of the public alerted the police after spotting them on land at Cross Lanes on 30 August 2021. One of the men was lying on his stomach in a large rectangular hole which had been dug into a bank. Two quad bikes – one of which had a box attached with a terrier-type dog called Rosie inside – were also found at the scene. Jamie Barnes of Caernarvon Place, Beeston, Nottingham and Ben Davies of Cwm Mawr, Belan, Welshpool, had both denied one offence contrary to the Protection of Badgers Act 1992, but were found guilty at a trial in August 2021. Appearing at Wrexham Magistrates Court last Tuesday (18 October 2022), both men were fined £1,000 and each ordered to pay costs of £600, following a prosecution brought by the RSPCA. The court heard how the men thought the sett wasn’t active, despite the fact there were three access tunnels into it with clear badger trails leading in and out, small h...

A Weeting gamekeeper admitted shooting and poisoning several birds of prey. Matthew Stroud, age 46, of Fengate in Weeting, appeared at Norwich Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday 5 October 2022 and admitted: Six counts of killing a Common Buzzard Three counts of using poisoned bait One count of intentionally killing a Northern Goshawk One count of possessing a regulated substance – Strychnine Hydrochloride – without a licence One count of possessing 4 shotguns to kill a Schedule 1 wild bird One count of releasing 3,400 Common Pheasants into the wild One count of incorrectly storing a biocidal product – Rentokil Phostoxin He received a 12-month Community Order and was ordered to do 200 hours of unpaid work, fined £692 and ordered to pay costs of £145, compensation of £288.72 and a victim surcharge of £95. The court also ordered the forfeiture and destruction of all Stroud’s firearms, mobile phones and any chemicals. The court heard how the investigation started when RSPB off...

21st October 2022: A Cwmbran man has been ordered to pay a total of £279 after being caught fishing on a private stretch of the River Wye without permission or a valid rod licence. In a joint operation between Natural Resources Wales and Gwent Police, Kyle Moses, of Summerhill, Cwmbran, was seen by officers fishing on a private stretch of the river known as ‘The Dukes Water’ near the Duke of Beaufort Bridge at Wyesham, Monmouth, on 19 May. When questioned, Mr Moses initially told the officers that he had a rod licence but after being informed that checks would be carried out, he admitted this was not the case. The officers also found that Mr Moses was using an illegal treble barbed hook, commonly used when fishing for salmon, which is banned on all Welsh rivers. Mr Moses told the officers he was fishing for trout, but they noted that the method he was using was more suited to salmon fishing. The privately-owned Dukes Water fishery is a well-known salmon pool and Mr Moses admitted...

A man has been arrested after a large collection of sperm whale teeth was seized. IMAGE SOURCE: TVP Thames Valley Police said the 49-year-old from Grove, Oxfordshire, was arrested “on suspicion of offering for sale a specimen of an endangered species, namely whale teeth”. The force’s rural crime taskforce said the ivory teeth were worth about £18,350. The man has since been released under investigation. The police operation was supported by the UK National Wildlife Crime Unit. Sperm whales are protected by UK wildlife legislation. However, they still face a significant conservation threat as they continue to be commercially targeted for their ivory. Source: BBC The post Sperm whale teeth seized and Oxford man arrested first appeared on National Wildlife Crime Unit | NWCU . source https://www.nwcu.police.uk/news/wildlife-crime-press-coverage/sperm-whale-teeth-seized-and-oxford-man-arrested/

Pangolin Scales. Credit: A. Roberts, NWCU A Chinese medicine practitioner who admitted to being involved in the illegal trade of endangered wildlife has been sentenced at Northampton Crown Court. Lei Zheng, of Holkham Walk in Corby, was charged with seven counts of selling or keeping endangered species for sale including Pangolin, Musk, Seahorses and four species of plants. On Thursday, September 8, 2022, the 54-year-old pleaded guilty and was sentenced to six months in prison – suspended for 21 months – and ordered to complete 120 hours of unpaid work. Rural Crime Team officers from Northamptonshire Police and the National Wildlife Crime Unit launched a joint investigation in July 2018, after Zheng was found to be selling illegal Musk products on the internet. It soon became clear that Zheng was running a substantial online business which included the selling of Chinese medicines, which resulted in the execution of search warrants at several addresses. During searches at his ...

  IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES A director of a housebuilding firm has been fined more than £9,000 after a badger sett was damaged during construction work in Aberdeen. Bruce Allan, 57, admitted breaching the Protection of Badgers Act in Milltimber in June last year. He was fined in his capacity as a director of Malcolm Allan Housebuilders after allowing work to dig and level the land in question to proceed. Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard there was no evidence that any badgers died. The court heard that a badger protection plan had been available and a local resident also highlighted the location of the sett, but an access route was constructed. This was when the damage was caused. Allan, from Kintore, Aberdeenshire, had admitted the charge last week and the case was continued for sentencing. On Tuesday 20th September 2022, Sheriff Lesley Johnston described proceeding with the work as “reckless”. The sheriff said she had been told Allan regre...

Today (1st September 2022) sees the launch of the new National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) Wildlife & Rural Crime Strategy for 2022-2025. DCC Debbie Ford, NPCC lead for Rural and Wildlife Crime, states “ I am proud to introduce the new three-year strategy for rural and wildlife crime. This strategy will build on the work undertaken to deliver the 2018 – 2021 strategy and the fantastic progress that has been made. I would like to thank everyone who has worked so hard over the last four years and acknowledge the professionalism, effort and commitment, which has been so apparent through the successes and achievements to date “. The purpose of the NPCC strategy for Rural and Wildlife Crime is to provide a framework through which policing, and its partners can work together, to tackle the most prevalent threats and emerging issues which have the greatest impact on our rural communities or wildlife. Alongside the successful delivery of this strategy there will be a strong focus on c...

Defendants: Caer Construction (Directors Jan MILSOM and Mark POTTER) PC1154 Mark Powell the Natural Resources Wales seconded police officer successfully prosecuted Caer Construction Limited (a housing development company based largely within Monmouthshire) for Bat Offences on 26th July 2022. Directors Jan MILSOM and Mark POTTER carried out a renovation of a former primary school at Llanfoist Monmouthshire NP7 9NF and created two new build houses on a project within Pipistrelle Court, Llanfoist, Monmouthshire. Whilst doing so they failed to implement the conditions of a European Protected Species Licence issued by Natural Resources Wales in respect of bats known to be present on the site. Pleading guilty on behalf of the parent company, Caer Construction Limited, they were fined more than £7400. Their fines should stand as a warning to other developers in Wales who carry out work without first ensuring that the agreed licence conditions are followed and that all works support and pr...

  Two men from Chester, 35-year-old Warren Kelly (29/05/1986) of Sycamore Drive and 58-year-old Andrew Dutton of Clover Place (20/07/1964) have both been given five year criminal behaviour orders (CBOs), after they were convicted of four offences under the Game Act and two offences under the Hunting act, for Hare Coursing in Ormskirk, West Lancashire. Andrew Dutton (Image courtesy of Lancashire Police The pair were known to poach all over Lancashire, Lincolnshire, Humberside, Merseyside, North Wales, Cheshire, West Mercia, Shropshire and Bedfordshire. The CBO bans them from being anywhere in England and Wales in possession or control of a dog other than in their home address and from being with any person anywhere in England and Wales with a dog. It also bans them out of huge portions of Lancashire and Merseyside, (see below maps) from acting in a manner that is likely to cause harassment, alarm and distress.  In addition, they were handed down almost £1000 in fines and...

Relaxation of Covid-19 travel restrictions saw the return of the ‘glass eels in a suitcase’ modus operandi. A joint operation by European law enforcement entities has dealt yet another major blow to organised crime groups involved in global glass eel trafficking. Operation Lake VI ran from November 2021 to June 2022, with Europol, EFCA, OLAF, and the EU Commission’s DG SANTE coordinating law enforcement authorities from 24 countries* across Europe and around the globe. In the operation’s current season, 27 701 inspections were carried out all over Europe, which led to the arrest of 49 individuals and the seizure of 1 255 kilograms of glass eels worth about EUR 1.9 million in total. Operation Lake targets the trafficking of the protected European glass eel, one of the most devastating crimes against wildlife worldwide. While the European eel ( Anguilla anguilla ) population has decreased by 90 % in recent years, persistent law enforcement activities against eel trafficking co...

  Two people are due to appear in court charged in connection with cruelty to a fox. In December 2021 ITV News revealed footage showing a fox being allegedly manhandled in a wood in Essex. Now police say they have charged 49-year-old Paul O’Shea with hunting a wild mammal with dogs and causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal. They also say a 16-year-old girl has been charged with hunting a wild animal with dogs.  Both defendants are due to appear at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday 22 June 2022. Source: ITV news The post Man and 16-year-old girl charged in connection with cruelty to a fox first appeared on National Wildlife Crime Unit | NWCU . source https://www.nwcu.police.uk/news/wildlife-crime-press-coverage/man-and-16-year-old-girl-charged-in-connection-with-cruelty-to-a-fox/

IMAGE SOURCE,CHESHIRE POLICE RURAL CRIME TEAM THREE tawny owls were seized at a house in St Helens as police carried out a raid as part of an investigation into an alleged “wild bird disturbance” in Cheshire. Officers in St Helens joined Cheshire Police Rural Crime Team to execute the warrant on Monday morning. The raid was in connection with allegations of possible offences at a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Cheshire. In a statement police said: “A number of partner agencies joined us, including Natural England, RSPCA (England & Wales) and the National Wildlife Crime Unit. “At present Cheshire Police are still investigating. During the warrant three tawny owls were seized due to poor conditions and no relevant records being located, along with other related evidence and a quantity of class B drugs. “Wildlife Crime is a growing issue and it is important to tackle it with our partner agencies.” Cheshire Police Rural Crime Team confirmed a warran...

Three men accused of committing offences under Section 1 of the Night Poaching Act 1828, pleaded guilty at Northampton Magistrates’ Court. The trio were charged with trespassing on private land for the purpose of catching wildlife after a suspicious van parked near Moonshine Gap in Wellingborough, on December 5 last year, was reported to Northamptonshire Police. Following an extensive search by officers, Kieran Hindley, Carl Maguire, and David Bradshaw were found in the opposite field with four Lurcher type dogs and a Harris Hawk. The men were also found to be in possession of equipment commonly used for the purpose of poaching including numerous animal call whistles which encourage the prey out and a lamp to spot them. Hindley, aged 34, of Long Moss, Netherton, Bootle, Maguire, aged 33, of Heathfield Road, Birkdale in Southport, and Bradshaw, aged 42, of Longfield Avenue, Crosby, Liverpool, were each ordered to pay £463.04 in compensation. At the hearing on Friday, June 10, 2...