THE number of poaching offences across the North East has halved, police have revealed.
Northumbria Police’s dedicated rural policing team was set up in June 2020 tasked with preventing and tackling rural acquisitive crime, wildlife and poaching offences.
In that year, a total of 616 poaching offences were reported across the region.
Since then, under the banner of Operation Hawkeye, police have been carrying out targeted activity across the North of England and Scotland alongside neighbouring police forces and partners.
They have been assisted by the Force’s Rural Crime Volunteers – a team of more than 50 residents who feed directly into on-patrol officers.
The crackdown is making a difference, police have said, with 312 offences reported in 2022 – almost half the number from two years earlier.
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Inspector Garry Neill, of Northumbria Police’s rural policing team, said: "A huge amount of work has been carried out by the whole team, our partners and volunteers over the last two-and-a-half years and these figures are testament to that.
"We are passionate about protecting those who live in the most remote areas of Northumbria and we know the impact that rural crime has on these communities.
"We will continue to pursue offenders using innovative methods and tactics, including our nine-force regional Community Protection Notices launched in November 2022 as one of the biggest anti-poaching crackdowns of its kind in the UK.
"Tackling and preventing poaching offences has been a priority for the team over the last few years. These offenders often use dogs to indiscriminately kill wildlife whilst leaving behind a trail of destruction by damaging fields and fences with vehicles.
"We will be looking to maintain the recent momentum and continue to hit rural criminals hard throughout 2023.
"As ever, we would ask the public to work with us. If you are a victim of crime or see anybody acting suspiciously, or you suspect them to be poaching in your communities, please report it to us. That way, we can take action against any perpetrators intent on committing rural crime in the Northumbria Force area."
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