Three men have been charged, and their vehicles and poaching gear seized, in a rural police crackdown on poaching across Northumbria.

The action comes as Northumbria Police’s Rural Crime Team ramps up efforts ahead of poaching season.

Officers have recently seized a vehicle in the Alnwick area from suspected poachers, while three men in Healey were stopped, searched, and found with items linked to poaching.

One individual, who was suspected to be a poacher, was stopped and searched in his vehicle which led to him being arrested and charged for being drunk in charge of a motor vehicle.

Two men are also set to appear in court for causing unnecessary suffering to a deer and for trespassing on private land in pursuit of deer.

The Rural Crime Team, established in 2020, focuses on tackling poaching and other wildlife crimes that deeply affect rural communities.

Poaching is the illegal hunting or capturing of wild animals, that is done often for their meat, horns, scales or skin. 

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Inspector Garry Neill of the Rural Crime Team encouraged the public to report suspicious activity, noting that damage to property, trespassing, and threats to local wildlife are all concerns.

He said: “We understand the concerns of the rural community when it comes to poaching, it has a massive impact from damage to gates and crops, trespassing on private land and the obvious devastation to local wildlife.

“We also understand the community are often reluctant to report matters. These incidents from the last two weeks will hopefully reinforce that we do take them seriously.

“Officers are better trained at dealing with poaching thanks to the work of the Rural Crime Team and our partners. We have more technology such as drones and dedicated rural response hubs all of which help us deal with poaching but only if we are aware of where it is happening. For this we rely on the community.

“Anyone who sees anything suspicious in their community should report it to police by going to our website and reporting under the ‘Report a crime or incident’ section.