Cracking down on SW illegal hunting
Every year we deal with 12 to 20 odd people who have been unlawfully hunting in our forests.
In December last year a 31 year old Tauranga male was arrested for poaching in a local forest and he appeared in court for sentencing on February 9 where he was given a prison warning and 100 hours community service.
The crown has also been given the power to take everything related to his offence so he has lost his vehicle, everything inside it, his hunting dogs, firearms, and anything else used in the offence which will all be sold.
The courts are really cracking down on unlawful hunting and we are expecting and hoping to see a whole lot more of this taking place to deal with these offenders.
The severity of the penalty really highlights how dangerous it is for people working in the forestry industry who are out there 24/7. Permits allow them to know people will not go hunting where they are working but poachers can be here, there and everywhere which puts them in danger.
The judge has warned this man that if he is ever caught again he will go to prison.
Pigs and deer are the main animals being hunted but hunters must have permits if they are doing so. These can be obtained through various hunting clubs who will tell you where you can go which will minimise risk to yourself and others.
It is a simple process and all we ask is that people do things correctly because if you don’t you can expect to go to court where you will run the risk of losing everything.
There were 21 family violence incidents from which three people were arrested. One of these was for property damage and the other couple for assaults.
These offenders will be appearing in court this week.
We had four burglaries for the week and again the main target seems to be clothing, a bit of scrap metal, and a vehicle.
The vehicle, a white Nissan Skyline registration JQJ49, is still outstanding so if anyone has any information about its whereabouts contact us at the station on 885 0100 or anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.