Hare coursing figures fall after police crackdown on illegal sport

A JOINT crackdown on hare coursing by two of Scotland's police forces has led to a dramatic reduction in the illegal blood sport in its Scottish heartland, it was revealed yesterday.

In a major initiative earlier this year, Grampian and Tayside Police launched a concerted campaign, codenamed "Operation Lepus", against the illegal sport in the north-east and Tayside.

Grampian Police announced yesterday the initiative had led to the number of hare coursing incidents in the force area falling from 73 in 2009 to only 32 this year. And Tayside Police revealed that the number of incidents in the force area had been reduced from 44 to 28 over the same period.

Hare coursing , which involves the hunting of brown hares using dogs, normally lurchers, was banned in Scotland in 2002 and carries a fine of up to 5,000 and six months' imprisonment.

The joint crackdown was part-funded by PAW (Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime) Scotland and enabled both forces to carry out additional patrols in rural areas as well as visiting farms and estates to make staff aware of the operation.

Roseanna Cunningham, Scotland's environment minister and chair of PAW Scotland, hailed the success of the operation. She said: "Hare coursing is cruel and those who indulge in such illegal sports should know that the police are alert to their activities.

"This joint approach is a good example of the steps that police forces are taking to improve their response to wildlife crimes. I congratulate both the forces and all partner organisation that have supported this operation."

Alan Stewart, wildlife crime officer with Tayside Police, said: "While hare coursing is still with us, we are making a difference."