Wildlife groups and gamekeepers say problem is out of hand with thousands of incidents going unreportedDeer poaching has trebled in the last year, according to new figures, as gamekeepers said the problem was out of hand and agencies admitted they were tackling only a tiny proportion of cases.The number of deer poaching incidents reported to the police in
England and Wales rose to 335 in the 12 months to October, up from 106 the previous year. But
wildlife and countryside groups say thousands of cases go unreported, largely because few believe the police would take it seriously, despite fines of up to £5,000."It is an increasing problem," said Gareth Cole, England's only dedicated poaching officer who took up the newly created post at the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NCWU) in September."The image of a poacher as a wily man taking a couple of pheasants for the family pot is certainly not true. Modern poachers are professional, organised criminals, who
travel round the country and are often involved in other types of crime. Deer are killed by dogs in a barbaric manner and the poachers have no interest in the condition of the meat which they sell on the black market to the back doors of pubs or hotels," he said.Higher unemployment rates due to the recession, a surge in the
UK's deer population and improved record-keeping are believed to have contributed to the higher figures, with poaching intensifying in the run up to Christmas and the new year when there is an increased demand for game.The British Deer Society believes up to 50,000 deer may be poached annually and Simon Clarke, of the British Association for Shooting and Conservation, agreed. With black market venison selling for about £1 a lb, deer poaching was worth up to £5m a year, he said. "Not all police forces report the figures to the wildlife crime unit. There is great disillusionment from gamekeepers about how police will respond to reports, so many do not bother. The police do not always know t ...
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