Man held as 'bird traps' seized in swoop on his home

A PIGEON fancier has been charged by police after bird traps used to catch wild hawks were allegedly found in his back garden.

The six traps were allegedly used to illegally catch the birds of prey and then kill them.

One of the traps was found baited with live wild and exotic finches, which are typically used to capture sparrowhawks, a protected species.

Wildlife campaigners today described the case as unusual and "very serious".

The traps were seized in a joint operation between police and officers from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

Wildlife crime officers from Lothian and Borders Police found the traps after a tip-off led them to search the house near Haddington, East Lothian.

Police said the man, believed to be in his late 40s, will be reported to the procurator fiscal for various offences under the Wildlife and Countryside Act as well as the Protection of Animals Act.

If found guilty, he faces a fine of up to 5000 per animal and a custodial sentence of up to six months.

The search at his home was carried out with expert witnesses from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds Scotland and the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, which took the zebra finches into care.

Sparrowhawks are often described as "garden terrorists" because they prey on tits, finches and robins from garden bird-feeders. The female birds are also known to target racing pigeons.

Sparrowhawks are fully protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, which makes it an offence to kill, injure or take an adult, or to take, damage or destroy an active nest or its contents.

Although the breeding and possession of finches is allowed, it is illegal to capture the birds from the wild.

Pigeon-fancying organisations recently lobbied the Scottish Parliament to change the law to remove protection for the birds, but failed.

Dave Dick, RSPB Scotland investigations officer, said: "This is a very serious incident because we’re talking about several traps allegedly being recovered.

"There is no excuse for killing sparrowhawks. For Lothian this is a serious incident, we don’t tend to get a lot of wildlife crime reported in the area, but one thing people don’t realise is that not all wildlife crime takes place out in the wild - a lot of it happens in suburban areas in people’s back gardens.

"Pigeon fanciers made recent attempts to get the law changed and remove protection for sparrowhawks, but thankfully the will of the Scottish people through the parliament is that these birds remain protected."

The arrest follows the creation in September of a network of specialist prosecutors to tackle wildlife crime in Scotland. The investigators will work with procurators fiscal, police and wildlife organisations.

Solicitor General Elish Angiolini QC said the long-term protection of natural heritage depended on a strategy of education, crime prevention and enforcement. The wildlife prosecutors will bring forward criminal cases reported by agencies such as the RSPB and the SSPCA as well as police wildlife officers, and provide advice to other prosecution staff.

Pc Ruaraidh Hamilton, wildlife crime officer with Lothian and Borders Police, said: "The police take very seriously any report of crime against wildlife. We actively encourage the public to come forward with any information as this will help us to protect the magnificent range of wildlife found in the Lothian and Borders region."

In August this year campaigners called for lifetime bans on owning animals to be made compulsory for people who are cruel to their pets.

The move came after welfare officers revealed a woman went unpunished despite leaving her Jack Russell terrier to die a "painful and lingering" death while she went on a fortnight’s holiday.

Angry campaigners said they were dismayed that the 42-year-old woman, from Prestonpans, East Lothian- who they accused of a "callous act of neglect" - was merely admonished in court.

The woman was prosecuted for leaving the terrier alone for two weeks without food or water while she went on holiday. The 17-year-old dog died of dehydration just 24 hours before it was found by police and SSPCA inspectors.