Police issued warning after farmer was threatened with catapult in hare coursing incident
12th July 2024
Hampshire Police are urging farmers to be extra vigilant for hare coursing activity following a recent incident that saw a farmer being threatened with a catapult.
Suspicious vehicles, suspected to be involved in coursing, have been spotted on farmland in areas including Kingsclere, Hannington and Herriard.
On 5th July, a farm in Kingsclere was threatened with a catapult, and an incident in Herriard, reported on 9th July, saw an offending vehicle narrowly avoid colliding with a victim’s dog, police confirmed.
Officers later seized the vehicle in Liphook, and a Lurcher dog was seized by police in Herriard.
Significant damage caused to farmland
A spokesperson for Hampshire Constabulary said that coursing not only involves the poaching of hares, but often sees significant damage caused to the farmland by individuals and vehicles trespassing, in addition to intimidation and threats of violence towards landowners.
They added: “We anticipate seeing further incidents elsewhere in the county, and urge people to be aware and to report coursing and associated damage to us.
“We would like to remind people to never approach the individuals involved in this type of crime – your safety is priority.
“If it is safe to do so, you can consider obtaining any photos or video/dash cam footage to provide to the police.”
If the crime is not in progress or has just happened, or you have any information or intelligence about any rural and wildlife crime, you can report this to police by calling 101, using the report tool on www.hampshire.police.uk or reporting anonymously to the charity Crimestoppers by calling 0800 555 111.
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