LEGAL EAGLE
The RSPB’s investigations newsletter
Page 4
A day at the zoo –
COTES offences
Page 5
RSPB tip-off results in
German seizures
A judge has ruled that macaw smuggler
Harry Sissen made £160,000 from
smuggling rare parrots. The ruling on 2
August 2001 followed a five-day Asset
Forfeiture hearing at Teesside Crown
Court, during which HM Customs claimed
for the amount they said Sissen had made
from the profits of his illegal activities.
In April 2000, Sissen received a 21⁄2 year
prison sentence, later reduced on appeal
to 18 months, for smuggling three Lear’s
macaws and six blue-headed macaws into
the UK from Eastern Europe (see Legal
Eagle 25).
Customs seized 140 birds from Sissen’s
North Yorkshire farm during two raids in
1998, claiming that he ran a massive
commercial operation to breed
endangered species from smuggled birds.
Customs argued that Sissen had made
£404,000 from his smuggling operation.
Page 10
RSPB flies to Malta to
train wildlife police
The burden of proof in confiscation
hearings such as these is on the
defendant, and the judge found that Sissen
had not kept any proper records of where
his birds came from.
The defence claimed that Sissen’s lack of
record keeping was due to his dyslexia
and poor education, but Judge Guy
Whitburn said he found him articulate,
capable of organisational feats, and
someone who revelled in his reputation.
Substantial amounts of cash were found in
Sissen’s house but the judge described his
declared income as ‘derisory’.
OCTOBER 2001
No. 30
Tyne Tees TV
Sissen
holds his
hands up
In a bizarre protest outside the court
Sissen painted his hands to symbolise
injustice and the blood of his parrots
The judge said Sissen would try to operate
within the law but was prepared to go to
any lengths to obtain endangered species
from which to breed. He ruled that Sissen
had benefited to the tune of £60,000 for
the nine birds for which he was jailed, and
£100,000 for other birds in his possession
for which he had no account. But he said
that some of the profit had been as the
result of breeding and legal trading. A
hearing will now decide how much Sissen
has to pay to Customs after his assets
have been taken into account.
Sissen, who was in court, having had his
sentence reduced on appeal, undertook a
bizarre protest in front of the TV cameras
Continued on back page
COURT CASES COURT CASES COURT CASES
A black day for
cormorant killer
Fairleys
… but no
punishment
for Sussex
slaughter
The Crown Prosecution Service has
advised Sussex Police and the
RSPB that there is insufficient
evidence to proceed with charges
despite several eyewitness
accounts of a group of men
blasting cormorants out of the sky
at Chichester gravel pits in
November 2000.
Vermin controller and angler Terrence Day fined for killing cormorants
In December 2000, RSPB investigators
caught Terrence Day, a vermin
controller, attempting to shoot a
cormorant at Henlow Lakes in
Bedfordshire. Day, a member of
Letchworth Angling Club, admitted to
killing two other birds that morning.
With the help of Bedfordshire Fire
Service, a dead cormorant was retrieved
from the lake and x-rays subsequently
proved that it had been shot.
Bedfordshire Police prosecuted Day, of
Abbots Road, Letchworth, Hertfordshire,
and he appeared at Luton Magistrates’
Court on 12 July 2001. He was fined
£250 for killing two birds and
attempting to kill a third. The court also
seized the shotgun used to kill the birds
and later Hertfordshire Police revoked
his firearms licence for a year.
Investigations Officer Mark Thomas
said, ‘Extensive Government-funded
research has cleared the cormorant of
its reputation of having a detrimental
effect on fish stocks at a national level.
There is no excuse for the illegal killing
of cormorants as licences are available
from the Department for Environment,
Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) where
it can be shown that they are causing
serious damage to fisheries and no
other satisfactory solution is available.’
Pole-traps used in garden
On 16 March 2001, Kevin Newton of
Sheffield Road, Killamarsh, Sheffield,
was fined £200 and £35 costs at
Chesterfield Magistrates’ Court after
pleading guilty to three charges under
the Pests Act 1954 in relation to the
non-approved use of spring-traps.
three Fenn-traps set in the
open on top of poles. Fenn-traps
can only be used legally under cover
to kill certain small mammals. Poletraps, originally designed to trap
birds of prey, have been illegal
since 1904.
In October 2000 the RSPB received
information about pole-traps set inside
a compound holding wildfowl at the
rear of Newton’s home. WLO PC Russ
Parrish of Derbyshire Police found
Newton claimed he had set the poletraps for squirrels though it is
suspected that the intended targets
were corvids attracted to food in the
wildfowl enclosure.
2
The RSPB subsequently searched
the pits, which was being set up as
a trout fishery, and found 22 dead
cormorants. Five of the birds were
dragged from a lake and the other
17 had been dumped on a fire and
partially burnt. RSPB investigations
officers took a sample of birds to a
local veterinary surgery where xrays showed they had been shot.
Three witnesses at the scene of the
shooting incident on 22 October
2000, in which several cormorants
were apparently killed, described
the man they believed was
primarily responsible for
organising the shooting party and
took his car registration number.
On the same weekend, a different
group of witnesses contacted the
RSPCA with a similar complaint.
Sussex Police and the RSPB
subsequently interviewed two men
who denied any involvement with
the shooting.
RSPB Investigations Officer Duncan
McNiven said, ‘We shall be
examining with Sussex Police how
the case failed to get to court and
also making representations to the
owners of the fishing lakes, Cinque
Ports Leisure, to ensure that there
is no repeat of this slaughter.’
COURT CASES COURT CASES COURT CASES
Little owl prosecution
RSPB Images
Leicestershire Police WLO Neil Hughes
reports on a case on a wild little owl.
In September 2000, a wild little owl,
ringed with a barn owl-sized close ring,
was seized from David Charles Taylor
of Clifford Street, Wigston, Leicester.
The owl, which was said to have fallen
from a nest with three others, was
given to Taylor by Sean Leslie Fisher of
Highfield Street, Stoney Stanton,
Leicestershire, on behalf of Darren
David Hollis of Upper Hartshay, Heage,
Ripley in Derbyshire, a bird of prey
keeper who had been given the owl to
rear and return to the farm from where
it came.
At Leicester City Magistrates’ Court on
29 June 2001, Fisher and Hollis pleaded
guilty to the possession of a little owl
and were each fined £100. The
magistrates considered a submission
for a discharge because they had no
guilty intention. However, as they were
both professional or semi-professional
bird of prey keepers the bench ordered
they must accept that they had a
responsibility. Fisher also had his
Nests unstable
in Cable’s gable
On 29 May 2001, Julian Peter
Cable of Casewick Lane,
Uffington, Lincolnshire, was
seen destroying an active house
martin’s nest on his property
and was reported to the police.
Cable pleaded guilty to the
destruction of a wild bird’s nest
when he appeared at Stamford
Magistrates’ Court on 30 July
and was fined £250.
A wild little owl was the focus of
three convictions in Leicestershire
membership of the British Falconry
Association suspended. Taylor
appeared at Leicester City Magistrates’
Court on 13 July 2001 and pleaded
guilty. He was given a six-month
conditional discharge with costs of £25.
Investigations Officer Mark
Thomas said, ‘Many people are
unaware that it is an offence to
destroy a house martin’s nest
when it is in use and the RSPB
has to deal with several such
incidents each year. We hope
that this will highlight the fact
that this in an offence and reduce
the number of incidents and the
need for such prosecutions.’
Mark Thomas (RSPB Images)
Taxidermist ‘doing his best’
When Barnsley CID, helped by the
RSPB, executed a search warrant at the
home of Martin Walton of Napier
Mount, Ward Green, Barnsley, in March
2000 they seized over 50 dead birds.
Forensic examination suggested that
two sparrowhawks, a lapwing and a
juvenile hen harrier had been shot.
Relative to its population of 570 pairs,
the hen harrier is the UK’s most
persecuted bird. This is a rare specimen
in taxidermy and birds seized and
examined have usually turned out to
have been shot.
The hen harrier found in the freezer
suspected to have been shot
Walton, an amateur taxidermist with 30
years interest in the hobby, was unable
to produce any records relating to the
specimens, and in some cases birds had
apparently been left anonymously on
his doorstep.
3
During the trial at Barnsley Magistrates’
Court in April 2001 there was
considerable debate by pathologists,
vets and a taxidermist over the four
birds that had evidence of having been
shot. It could not be established what
the exact cause of death was.
The defence claimed that the juvenile
hen harrier was found dead near
Sheffield. The prosecution contested
this, based on the breeding distribution
and behaviour of this species, but were
only permitted to give limited evidence
on this point. Though Walton produced
some witnesses to support his
legitimate possession of some
specimens, it was a surprise that District
Judge Rosenburg ultimately dismissed
all charges. In summing up his decision,
he stated he believed Walton to be an
honest man simply doing his best.
COURT CASES COURT CASES COURT CASES
Andy McWilliam (Merseyside Police)
Community
service for
finch trapper
Alan Turner from Dickens Road,
Wolverhampton, appeared at
Wolverhampton Magistrates’
Court on 22 August 2001 facing 19
charges relating to finch trapping.
The court case followed a search
by the RSPCA in which two set
cage traps containing wild
goldfinches, two unset cage traps
containing wild bullfinches, a
further two cage traps, two wild
siskins, two wild greenfinches, two
wild goldfinches and a suffering
rabbit were found.
Turner pleaded guilty to all
charges and was sentenced to 240
hours community service, ordered
to pay £560 costs, and banned
from keeping animals for life.
Maximum
penalty for
blocked path
Millionaire Nicholas van
Hoogstraten was fined £15,000 on
3 July 2001 for failing to comply
with a court order to unblock a
public footpath. He had illegally
obstructed the path across his
estate near Uckfield, East Sussex,
for the past decade. Van
Hoogstraten’s company,
Rarebargain Ltd, to whom the land
is officially registered, was fined
£1,500 in January 2000 for
blocking the path. When van
Hoogstraten refused to clear the
path, Lewes Magistrates used new
powers under the Countryside and
Rights of Way Act in March 2001
to order the removal of the
obstructions (see Legal Eagle 29).
The £15,000 fine was the
maximum possible.
Douglas Petrie, owner of Southport Zoo, on the day of the warrant
A day at the zoo
Merseyside WLO PC Andy McWilliam
reports on a day out at Southport Zoo.
Local authority officials inspected
Southport Zoo, Merseyside, in
September 2000 because its licence
was due for renewal. They discovered
that the zoo did not hold an Article 30
Certificate for the Annex A specimens
on display.
On 20 November 2000, Stephanie
Pendry from TRAFFIC International,
RSPCA inspectors and I executed a
warrant and recorded 71 specimens
listed on Annex A of the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered
Species (CITES) Regulations. Zoo
owner Douglas Petrie explained that
until recently he was unaware of the
need for an Article 30. He stated that he
had requested one from the
Department of the Environment,
Transport and the Regions (DETR, now
DEFRA) a few days earlier.
Petrie pleaded not guilty at North
Sefton Magistrates’ Court on 11 July
2001 to 10 specimen charges under
Regulation 8 of The Control of Trade in
Endangered Species (Enforcement)
Regulations 1997 (COTES).
Evidence given by Roy Pitt and Ian
Hunt from DEFRA led to the production
of a document dated February 1998,
4
Under the Control of Trade of
Endangered Species (Enforcement)
Regulations 1997 an Article 10
certificate is required for all Annex
A specimens being used for
commercial purposes. A zoo
exhibiting such a specimen to the
public is classified as a commercial
purpose. Since 31 March 1998 the
DETR (now DEFRA) has issued
Article 30 certificates to zoos,
museums, scientific institutes and
botanical gardens to cover their
entire collections. To comply with
the licence all animals must be
individually marked (eg by a close
ring, microchip, tattoo or tag)
similar to the requirements for an
Article 10 certificate.
written by Petrie, referring to an Article
30 Certificate, showing that he must
have known about them. The timing of
this document was just after the DETR
had sent out an information pack to all
zoos. Following this crucial evidence,
Petrie changed his plea to one of guilty.
He was fined £5,000 with £350 costs.
He also forfeited the 37 specimens
listed in the charges, which included
scarlet macaws, owls, cotton-tipped
tamarinds, ocelots and tortoises.
COURT CASES COURT CASES COURT CASES
Monkey business ends up
in court
John White HMCE Enforcement Photographic Unit
Stephanie Pendry, UK Enforcement
Assistance Officer for TRAFFIC
International, reports on a Customs
bushmeat prosecution.
‘Bushmeat’ describes the meat of any
wild animal, usually from the forests of
Africa or Asia, and includes anything
from cane rat to elephant. Most trading
in the meat occurs within Africa, but
there is a demand for it from expatriate
African communities. Some species
used for bushmeat are prohibited or
controlled in international trade.
HM Customs and Excise (HMCE)
National Investigation Service (NIS)
began investigating the illegal
bushmeat trade in London, primarily as
a result of the activities of a tabloid
newspaper. A journalist posing as a
customer requested a monkey from a
shop in Dalston Market, East London,
and was told it would be possible, but
that it would be expensive as it was
illegal and hard to get through Customs.
The illegally imported tantalus
monkey carcass
The journalist paid £350 for a tantalus
monkey carcass which was taken to the
International Primate Protection League
(IPPL), which contacted HMCE. On 10
November 1999 officers of HMCE NIS
and representatives from HMCE CITES
Team from Heathrow, the IPPL and
TRAFFIC International, raided the
premises and arrested two Nigerian
nationals for smuggling bushmeat.
Mobolaji Osakuade and Rose Kinnane
appeared at Southwark Crown Court,
London, in May 2001, both charged on
12 counts with the importation of
goods contrary to section 170(2) of the
Customs and Excise Management Act
1979 and with selling prohibited
specimens on Annex B of the EC
Council Regulation 338/97, contrary to
Regulation 8(2) of COTES. Osakuade
pleaded guilty to the monkey charges
and was found guilty of eight other
offences involving the smuggling of
python and lizard skins. Kinnane denied
all charges, but was found guilty of 10
offences including smuggling a
pangolin. Sentencing took place at the
Old Bailey on 15 June 2001 and varied
from three to four months in prison for
each count, to run concurrently.
NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS
RSPB tips off Germans
Surprisingly, the German
prosecutor agreed to the handover
of 13 of the seized juvenile kites to
the RSPB to supplement the kite
re-introduction programme in
Scotland. An RSPB representative
flew to Berlin to pick the birds up
in mid-July. After a short
quarantine, they were released in
August in Central Scotland and in
Dumfries and Galloway to join
Dave Dick (RSPB)
Following a tip-off from the RSPB,
German authorities seized 68 birds
of prey from four German keepers.
This included 15 red kites, 22
goshawks, seven peregrines and a
golden eagle. Two of the men were
arrested and all four are expected
to face charges relating to the
illegal possession and sale of
wild birds.
Duncan Orr-Ewing from the RSPB
with one of the German red kites
birds already released as part of
the successful programme to
restore the red kite to the Scottish
landscape.
5
CRoW protection
for hen harrier
Following the first prosecution for the
killing of a hen harrier by a gamekeeper in
May 2001, English Nature is to monitor hen
harrier nest sites over the next 2–3 years
in the hope of increasing its breeding
success on grouse moors. Only six pairs
bred successfully in England last year
despite figures from the Game
Conservancy Trust that show there is
sufficient habitat in England to support an
estimated 232 pairs.
New powers under the CRoW Act allow
EN to enter land, even if permission is
refused, to survey species such as the hen
harrier. EN has pledged to prosecute if it
finds evidence of hen harrier persecution.
NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS
Inspector Gordon Nicholl (Tayside Police)
A motley selection of officers from Tayside Police and the RSPB relaxing after
a long day guarding ospreys
Tayside Police
protects ospreys
Inspector Gordon Nicholl of Tayside
Police describes the guarding of
some of Scotland’s nesting ospreys.
RSPB figures show that of 102 nests
raided since their return, a staggering
32 have been in the last 14 years in a
small area of Perthshire that is
exceptionally favoured by ospreys.
Their nests may be next to a popular
hillwalkers’ footpath or in small trees
climbable by a determined five-yearold! This does not make crime
prevention easy.
This spring we decided to use oldfashioned observations by
volunteers, including police officers
Mike McKendry of the MOD and Ian
Kerr of the Northumbria Ringing
Group recount a successful peregrine
protection operation
Two peregrines successfully fledged
from a nest site near Otterburn,
Northumbria, in July 2001. As chicks
had been taken from the site during
the past three years, Operation Merlin
was organised involving the Ministry
of Defence (MOD), Northumbria Police,
the RSPB and the Northumbria
Ringing Group.
The nest site is within the Otterburn
Military Training Area, the largest livefiring range in Britain, and was an
ideal location for a covert surveillance
operation during a critical two-week
period of the breeding season.
Catterick-based soldiers from the 5
Regiment, Royal Artillery were drafted
in to watch the site. The soldiers were
briefed on peregrine protection and a
control room was set up at Otterburn.
Northumbria Police patrols and the
force helicopter crew were briefed in
case the Army called on them to arrest
someone. The teams moved in under
cover of darkness and by dawn were
established in hidden dug-outs in
radio contact with the control room.
The site was given 24-hour coverage
… and a ca
Fortunately, the weather was kind
this year with spectacular dawns and
sun-filled skies – most of the time
anyway! A treat for everyone was
the memorable sight and sound of
black grouse lekking close to our
night-time bothy.
RSPB Images
While ospreys continue to increase to
over 130 pairs in Scotland, they are
still a major target of egg collectors
who just can’t seem to resist this
magnificent bird. They have suffered
heavy losses to egg collectors since
they recolonised Scotland in the
1950s.
and the RSPB. Tayside Police’s
Operation Easter and the RSPB
helped pin down the most vulnerable
periods and a hardy group spent
long days and nights out on the hill
ready in case an egg collector
dropped by. They applied a weatherdurable DNA-marked substance to
some nesting trees to help identify
anyone who climbed them.
Army watc
The ospreys were conspicuous and
it’s always quite a sight to see one
fishing the loch in front of you. More
importantly, they were undisturbed
and had a successful breeding
season. They will return next year –
and so will we.
Peregrines on the nest
6
NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS
ches over peregrines
Eric Meek (RSPB)
MOD
(Above) Members of 5 Regiment
involved with the watch
(Left) The two healthy
peregrine chicks fledged from
the guarded Otterburn nest,
being ringed by the
Northumbria Ringing Group
with the use of specialist optical
equipment and detection devices.
This was supported by a covert video
system installed at the nest site by
the RSPB.
There were no attempts on the site and
the operation ensured that two
peregrines, a male and a female,
successfully fledged from the nest.
The operation also helped cover two
other peregrine nests, which fledged a
further four young.
Captain Stan Mawson, the Otterburn
Range Liaison Officer, said, ‘The Army
was delighted with the success of the
operation and the watch provided
invaluable experience for the teams.’
Bryan Galloway of the ringing group
said, ‘We are delighted how the Army
responded and hope that there will
be similar training operations in
the future.’
mera helps in Devon
Last year was the worst for peregrine
poisoning incidents since the Wildlife
and Countryside Act 1981 came into
force. Eleven peregrines were
confirmed as poisoned and four more
birds were strongly suspected.
Tethered or wing-clipped pigeons, or
their remains, brushed with toxic
pesticides, were found close to most
of the victims. It is believed this
poisoning was organised across
England and Wales by a few
disgruntled pigeon fanciers.
It was therefore wonderful news that a
quarry nest site in Devon, previously
targeted by illegal poisoning,
successfully fledged three young in
July 2001. In 2000 two juveniles and an
adult were poisoned after two pigeon
baits laced with concentrated aldicarb
were lowered into the nest on fishing
line. The site was also targeted with
tethered pigeons in 1999. The RSPB
worked with the National Trust, the
owners of the site, to install a covert
camera close to the nest. The
dedication of local volunteers and site
wardens Gus Fergusson and Steve
Holley was invaluable in keeping the
site safe. Gus Fergusson said, ‘After the
sickening loss of the three birds
poisoned last year, we are delighted
with this year’s success.’
7
Compass
shows
the way
Operation Compass is a
partnership between WLOs from
Norfolk, Suffolk and Lincolnshire,
the RSPB and 30 nature reserves
in East Anglia. It aims to prevent
egg thefts from wild birds and
gather intelligence on the
activities of egg collectors to
compliment Operation Easter run
nationally by the Tayside Police.
In spring 2001 efforts by sharpeyed National Trust wardens from
Blakeney, Norfolk, supported by
the local Police and the RSPB,
resulted in the arrest of five
people suspected of egg
collecting and disturbing nesting
Schedule 1 species. They are now
facing court action, including
offences of ‘reckless’ disturbance
introduced by the CRoW Act. In
August, the RSPB and the Norfolk
Wildlife Trust organised a
barbecue to celebrate the success
of the operation.
Jourdain Society
loses charity
status
The Jourdain Society, whose
members include several
convicted egg collectors, was
subject to a high profile
investigation by the Wiltshire
Police and the RSPB in 1994
called Operation Avocet. This
resulted in six individuals being
convicted of numerous offences
under the Wildlife and
Countryside Act 1981.
Following a complaint to the
Charities Commission by the
RSPB, the Jourdain Society
agreed to relinquish its charitable
status; in May 2001 it was
removed from the list of
registered charities.
NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS
Legal corner
Extra protection
for mute swans
Legal Eagle 28 highlighted the
difficulties of investigating
offences against mute swans that
are subject to abuse by vandals.
WLO PC Andy McWilliam recently
did some research on this
following similar problems in
Merseyside. He found that under
the Wild Creatures and Forest
Laws Act 1971 HM the Queen
retains a prerogative right to all
wild and unmarked swans on
open water in the UK. This right is
normally exercised only on
certain stretches of the Thames
where swans are captured and
marked each year in a process
know as ‘swan-upping. This dates
from medieval times when the
Crown claimed ownership of all
swans, which were an important
source of food.
As wild swans appear to
constitute property proceedings
could be considered under the
Theft and Criminal Damage Acts.
These are arrestable offences
unlike offences against swans
under the Wildlife and
Countryside Act 1981.
Offences under the Criminal
Damage Act 1971 also apply to
reckless acts unlike the Wildlife
and Countryside Act where any
killing or injuring must be shown
to be intentional.
The RSPB knows of at least two
cases where the CPS has
successfully used the Criminal
Damage Act for offences against
swans and WLOs should be
aware that this legislation may be
more suitable in certain cases.
Poison abuse and
estate liability
Nick Crampton from Norfolk Crown
Prosecution Service offers WLOs some
guidelines on the liability of estate
managers under The Control of
Pesticides Regulations 1986.
We reported on the prosecution of a
gamekeeper on the Holkham Estate,
Norfolk and of three persons from the
Estate believed to be his managers in
Legal Eagle 25 and 27. The prosecution
sought to establish that persons in a
management or supervisory role, other
than the employer, could be liable for
some of the offences of the keeper.
The Control of Pesticides Regulations
1986 states that offences may be
committed by three classes of person:
● the user of the pesticide
● any person who causes or permits
another to commit certain offences
● the employer.
There is a defence of having acted with
due diligence. This makes it more
difficult to hold an employer to account
for an employee’s actions where they
have delegated responsibility for that
employee to others. A successful
prosecution of intermediate supervisors
could help to reduce poisoning
incidents on keepered land, with direct
benefit to birds of prey.
Prosecutions were brought against the
Head Keeper (the keeper’s supervisor),
the Resident Agent (to whom the Head
Keeper reported) and the shooting
tenant (who leased the shooting rights
of the beat to which the keeper was
exclusively assigned). The offences
alleged related to ‘permitting’ the
keeper to commit offences relating to:
(i) the storage of pesticides where he
had been issued with those pesticides
(ii) the misuse of one of these
(iii) the storage of another pesticide
where the estate management knew he
was being given it by tenant farmers to
use for their benefit
(iv) the storage of other pesticides
which were properly on the estate but
8
which he had no reason to have and
which the estate management did not
give him or know he had
(v) the misuse and storage of a
pesticide which had not been issued,
which was not used legitimately on the
estate and which no one knew he had.
The prosecution succeeded against the
Head Keeper and Resident Agent on
offences (i) and (iii). On appeal, these
convictions were overturned, though
the Crown Court Judge expressed
misgivings about the quality of
supervision. The other categories (ii),
(iv) and (v) failed at the ‘no case to
answer’ stage because there was
insufficient evidence that any
management failing caused the
keeper’s offences. All the cases against
the shooting tenant failed at the ‘no
case to answer’ stage, as he had no
contractual duty to act in a supervisory
capacity towards the keeper.
Significantly, where the submission of
‘no case to answer’ failed, both in the
Magistrates’ and the Crown Courts, it
was in those cases where pesticides
were supplied by or with the
knowledge of the estate management,
and where those managers
themselves had contractual duties
towards the keeper or towards their
supervisor. In other words, managers
other than an employer, may be liable
for ‘permitting’ offences in respect of
failings by a keeper towards whom
they have duties of supervision.
Whether such are liable will hinge
on whether sufficient causative link
is established between the manager’s
failure to supervise and the keeper’s
offence.
The Crown Court said that failings by
more than one keeper on an estate
would be relevant to the issue whether
there had been a failure by
management, rather than a single act
by one keeper.
A more detailed analysis is available
from Nick Crampton, tel: 01603 693000.
ACTION FOR BIODIVERSITY ACTION FOR BIO
RSPB Images
WLO Inspector Nevin Hunter has initiated a project to protect marine mammals
Group with a
porpoise
Inspector Nevin Hunter, Devon and
Cornwall WLO, reports on a group set
up to protect marine mammals and
sharks in the UK.
Some of the largest populations of
basking sharks and dolphins in the UK
are found around south-west England.
We increasingly receive reports of
The group involves WLOs from the
Devon and Cornwall Constabulary, the
Ministry of Defence Police, the RSPCA,
English Nature, Devon and Cornwall
Wildlife Trusts, the Environment
Agency, the Shark Trust, Brixham
Seawatch, and the Whale and Dolphin
Conservation Society. It is hoped that
this group could form the nucleus of a
national group in future.
Thirty snakes were seized when
warrants were executed on 9 May
2001 at two addresses in Plymouth
under the provisions of the Control
of Trade in Endangered Species
(Enforcement) Regulations 1997
(COTES). The joint Police, HM
Customs and Excise, RSPCA and
Plymouth City Council operation
seized snakes that included 19 that
were venomous. This is believed to
be the largest police seizure of
snakes in the UK. Venomous
species included rattlesnakes,
sidewinders, eyelash vipers,
rhinoceros vipers and a Gaboon
viper, which has the largest fangs
of any venomous snake. The nonvenomous species included
emerald tree boas, false water
cobras and Bredls pythons. The
Reptile Trust is caring for the
snakes pending court proceedings.
Investigations are underway in
respect of offences under COTES
and the Dangerous Wild Animals
Act 1976 (DWA).
Any WLO contemplating an
investigation on reptiles where
COTES and DWA may be involved
can contact Inspector Nevin Hunter
at Tiverton Police Station or DC
Ian Gilbert at Plymouth Area
Support Team for practical advice
on 08705 777444.
BBC Wild
Since the Wildlife and Countryside Act
1981 there has not been a single
successful prosecution for harassment
or disturbance of cetaceans or basking
sharks in the UK. The new Countryside
and Rights of Way Act 2000 should
make such prosecutions easier with the
addition of the word ‘reckless’ and with
increased police powers, including a
power of arrest for certain offences
against such Schedule 5 animals.
harassment and disturbance involving
pleasure craft. The Marine Mammals
and Basking Shark Law Enforcement
Issues Group has been formed to
ensure that the public is aware of the
impact on these sensitive creatures, to
produce a code of conduct, to monitor
offences, and to enforce the law
effectively when serious or persistent
offenders are detected.
Snakes found
in raids on
two homes
Thieves dig up rare orchid
What is believed to be the last
remaining bog orchid in Norfolk has
been dug up. The bog orchid is
categorised as ‘scarce’ and has
declined dramatically in the UK. The
thieves apparently marked the site
with three posts during the day and
returned at night to take the orchid.
Brendan Joyce, the director of Norfolk
Wildlife Trust, said that the theft
undermined years of painstaking
conservation work.
9
Rattlesnake
ACTION FOR BIODIVERSITY ACTION FOR
Bat roost destroyed
PC Sparshott (Hampshire Police)
A court case in Hampshire has helped
our understanding of the legal
definition of a 'bat roost'.
Gerard Higham, owner and managing
director of K&K Industrial Services,
Sugar House Lane, London, was found
guilty at Fareham Magistrates' Court,
Hampshire, on 9 July 2001 of charges
relating to the damage or destruction of
a breeding site or resting place of
pipistrelle bats under The Conservation
(Natural Habitats, &c.) Regulations 1994.
He was fined £1,500 plus £300 costs.
K&K Industrial Services won a tender
from Berkeley Homes to remove
asbestos from the disused Knowle
Hospital in Wickham, Hampshire, prior
to the site being redeveloped. In May
2000, they removed the soffits from
a building which was listed in an
environmental assessment
commissioned by Berkeley Homes as
having bat droppings in the roof.
The report stated that English Nature
should be contacted before any work
progressed. K&K Industrial Services
had been given a copy of the report
by Berkeley Homes, but Higham
claimed that as the contractor he
did not have a responsibility for the
bats – this, he claimed, rested with
the developer.
Hampshire Police visit Knowle Hospital to gather evidence
Higham's defence claimed that as it
could not be proven that bats had used
the roost for the last two years, and
there was no evidence that the bats
would have returned even if the soffits
had not been removed, the site did not
qualify as a bat roost. By finding
Higham guilty the Magistrates accepted
that this site did fall within the definition
of a bat roost and that Higham's actions
had damaged or destroyed it.
Because bats tend to return to
traditional roost sites year after year, bat
workers have long interpreted the law
as giving protection to bat roosts even
when the bats are not present. However,
this is the first time that this
interpretation has been tested in
the courts.
Credit is due to Ian Davidson-Watts from
English Nature, PC Sparshott and PC
Mills from Hampshire Police, and Mark
Gammon from the CPS for treating this
crime seriously. PC Sparshott said. ‘This
highlights the need for planning
committees, developers and contractors
to all have regard for protected species.
Everyone should work together to
protect bats.’
INTERNATIONAL INTERNATIONAL INTERNAT
Dave Dick (RSPB)
The training workshop identified a
real-life finch-trapping incident
Maltese Police trained
In June 2001, Dave Dick, RSPB Senior
Investigations Officer, and Alan
Stewart, Tayside Police WLO Coordinator, ran a training course in
Malta for Maltese Police, Customs, the
CITES Management Authority and
military staff.
The training, provided at the request of
BirdLife Malta, included surveillance,
forensics, handling the media and
education. Malta has a problem with
illegal hunting of birds, in particular
migrating birds of prey, but there is
also a growing problem of smuggling
10
of live birds such as finches and dead
birds for taxidermy.
The project has formed strong bonds
between the organisations involved.
The excellent work undertaken by the
Administrative Law Enforcement
section of the police is one of several
positive steps in what is undoubtedly a
long-term fight against wildlife crime.
Falcons poisoned
The Eleonora’s falcon is a rare bird of
prey with a world population of around
4,500 pairs. Its breeding range is
concentrated around the Mediterranean
INTERNATIONAL INTERNATIONAL INTERNAT
basin. As a rare and colonial breeder it
is a particularly vulnerable, as
demonstrated by current problems on
Crete where the population has halved
in the last three years.
Czech falconer takes
Slovak eagle chick
SODAS
This dramatic decline is believed to be
due to the illegal use of pesticides. Tests
on dead birds have identified lethal
doses of the nerve poison methomyl
and many live birds also show
symptoms of poisoning. The birds are
believed to be affected when they drink
poisoned water put out to kill ‘vermin’.
In spring 2001, two more Czech
falconers, Milan Kroup and Jiri Bohata,
guided by Jurif Lizanatz from the
Ukraine, were apprehended in central
Slovakia. Although they had not taken
any chicks, they had tried to dispose of
climbing equipment and a map marked
with golden eagle nest sites. After being
questioned by he police, they were
deported.
guilty to money laundering, conspiracy,
smuggling, making false statements,
and violating the Lacey Act, the federal
law that prohibits trade in animals that
are protected under federal, state, or
international law.
Fleecing the
Tibetan antelope
Shahtoosh shawls have been found on
sale in London, providing more
evidence of the illegal trade in the
fleece of the threatened Tibetan
antelope or chiru. Video evidence has
been passed to the Metropolitan Police,
which is investigating the matter as part
of Operation Charm. The Chinese
Government believes that 20,000 chirus
are killed every year to supply the trade.
Two years ago, the total population was
fewer than 100,000, and it is likely to
have declined considerably since then.
Substantial quantities of raw wool have
been found for sale in Taglakot, on the
India/Nepal/Tibet border, as well as
numerous shawls in Delhi. India has
stepped up its enforcement of chiru
fleece smuggling, but this must be
supported by enforcement and strong
deterrent sentences in the major
western markets.
Jail for reptile smuggler
Keng Liang ‘Anson’ Wong, a Malaysian
businessman who owned and operated
Sungai Rusa Wildlife in Penang, and
who was a major target for wildlife law
enforcers, has been jailed. He pleaded
guilty to 40 charges of smuggling some
of the most endangered reptile species
in the world including the Komodo
dragon, the Madagascan spurred
tortoise, the Chinese alligator, the false
gavial and the radiated tortoise, and
was sentenced on 8 June 2001 in San
Francisco, California, to 71 months in
prison and a fine of $60,000. Wong
spearheaded an international
smuggling ring that included eight
others who have also been fined or are
awaiting sentencing. Wong pleaded
On 4 May 2001, Czech falconer Josef
Kubec was apprehended by the police
and State Nature Conservancy staff after
taking an eagle chick from a nest. Kubec
was remanded in Slovakia pending
investigation. DNA was used to
establish Kubec’s golden eagle breeding
claims and he was sentenced to one
year in prison.
Poached hyacinth
macaws seized
The chick illegally taken from the
nest
Jozef Chavko, Chairman of SODAS,
reports on the apprehension of a Czech
falconer caught taking a golden eagle
chick from a nest in Slovakia.
In the last 30 years, more than 250
golden eagle chicks, along with at least
540 saker, 120 peregrine and 100
imperial eagle chicks, have been stolen
from nests in the Slovak Republic. The
State Nature Conservancy of Slovakia
and the Working Group for the Research
and Protection of Birds of Prey and Owls
(SODAS) have developed a strategy to
apprehend nest robbers.
Most of the golden eagles are believed
to be smuggled into the Czech Republic.
On 5 May 1997 Czech falconers Jiri
Kucera and Jiri Sabl, along with his
teenage son, were videoed stealing
from a Slovakian golden eagle nest. The
two men were deported from Slovakia
and after a two-year trial in the Czech
Republic received probationary
sentences. This light sentence appeared
to trigger a strong increase in thefts
from Slovakian golden eagle nests.
11
Forty hyacinth macaws have been
confiscated at Itu in the state of São
Paulo, Brazil. This is the largest number
confiscated by the Brazilian authorities
in one action for 20 years. The hyacinth
macaw is a globally threatened species,
listed on Appendix I of CITES and
classified as ‘endangered’ by BirdLife
International. Largely confined to the
interior of Brazil, this beautiful blue
macaw has suffered from massive
illegal trade. At least 10,000 birds were
taken from the wild in the 1980s. Some
reports have estimated that as few as
3,000 birds may remain in the wild.
Prison for fighting
cock breeder
A man from Tazewell, Virginia, USA,
has been convicted of killing a red-tailed
hawk and using poison to kill other
birds of prey. He claimed to dislike
birds of prey because of losses suffered
to his fighting cock breeding operation.
He was sentenced to 18 months in
prison, fined $10,000 and ordered to
pay $5,000 in restitution. He was also
convicted of witness tampering. In
1995 he was convicted of killing two
golden eagles and a red-tailed hawk,
and received probation and ordered to
pay $16,000 in restitution.
Name
change
for
DETR
Following the election the
Government has amalgamated
the Ministry of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Food with the
parts of the Department of the
Environment, Transport and the
Regions, the Home Office, and
the Department of Trade and
Industry associated with
wildlife and countryside issues.
The result is the Department
for Environment, Food and
Rural Affairs (DEFRA).
Please note that the
Enforcement Section of the
Wildlife Licensing and
Registration Service have
moved to:
DEFRA
Floor 1, Zone 14
Temple Quay House
2 The Square
Temple Quay
Bristol BS1 6EB.
They can be contacted on tel:
0117 3728132; fax: 0117
3728393 or by e-mail:
roy.pitt/simon.liebert/
[email protected]
Update your library
Several publications, updated in light
of the CRoW Act, are now available
from Rosemary Venner in the RSPB
Investigations Office.
Wild Birds and the Law: this useful
but concise RSPB publication
normally costs £3 but is available to
WLOs for the bargain price of £2.
The RSPB information leaflets Birds
and the law, Birds and the law –
some questions answered and Bird
photography and the law are
available free of charge.
Bats and the law – what to do when
the law is broken, written for active
bat workers, but also proving
popular with WLOs, is available free
of charge.
An index of back issues of Legal
Eagle is available electronically
(please e-mail rosemary.venner
@rspb.org.uk) or as a paper copy
(please phone Rosemary on 01767
680551).
Write to be read
We welcome contributions to Legal Eagle. Please let us know about wildlife
crime initiatives, news, events and prosecutions in your force. Send your
articles to the Editor, Joan Childs, RSPB Investigations Officer, by e-mail to
[email protected] or by fax on 01767 691052. The views expressed in
Legal Eagle are not necessarily those of the RSPB. Please help us keep the
WLO contact list up-to-date by letting Rosemary Venner know of any changes.
From page 1
outside the court. He sprayed his
right hand with black paint to
represent the ‘injustice’ he had
suffered in what he described as ‘this
stinking court’, and his left hand with
red paint to signify ‘the blood of his
parrots’. He then proceeded to
scatter about £100 in £5 notes to
show his disgust at money, which he
claimed had driven the whole case.
A further hearing – Condemnation
Proceedings – will have to be held to
determine the fate of the 140 seized
birds. The Brazilian government has
requested the repatriation of the three
Lear’s macaws whose world
population is now 246 birds.
The RSPB
UK Headquarters, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire
SG19 2DL. Tel: 01767 680551
The RSPB works for a healthy environment rich in
birds and wildlife. It depends on the support and
generosity of others to make a difference. It works
with bird and habitat conservation organisations in
a global partnership called BirdLife International.
Registered charity no 207076
Northern Ireland Headquarters, Belvoir Park Forest,
Belfast BT8 7QT. Tel: 028 9049 1547
Scotland Headquarters, 25 Ravelston Terrace, Edinburgh
EH4 3TP. Tel: 0131 311 6500
South Wales Office, Sutherland House, Castlebridge,
Cowbridge Road East, Cardiff CF11 9AB. Tel: 029 2035 3000
23-484-01–02