Head of foxhounds group encouraged hunt, court told

THE head of a body representing foxhound packs encouraged members to use a “smokescreen” to hide illegal fox hunting, a court has heard.

Mark Hankinson, director of the Masters of Foxhounds Association (MFHA) allegedly told members to use trail hunting, where horseback riders follow trails laid with scent in advance, to hide people committing an offence.

The 60-year-old was charged after footage from a training webinar for MFHA members in August last year was obtained by hunt saboteurs, and passed on to the media and police.

Mr Hankinson denied the accusation when he appeared in Westminster magistrates’ court yesterday.

Gregory Gordon, prosecuting, said: “His intentions shine through very clearly. The prosecution say that the defendant gave advice on how to make it more difficult to be able to prove that an illegal hunt was happening.

“He gave advice on how to use trail hunting, in his own words, as a ‘smokescreen’ behind which illegal hunting could continue.”

Trail hunting was devised after the Hunting Act banned the hunting of foxes with dogs. It consists of a “trail layer” riding out ahead of the hunt, dragging a rag coated in the scent of an animal. Dogs then pick up the scent and follow it to the end of the trail.

The prosecution argued that this, to the casual observer, looks the same as traditional fox hunting.

“That is what makes it such a potentially useful smokescreen because if a hunt can pretend to lay trails, and then the hounds catch the scent of a fox, then a huntsman can say: ‘I thought they were hunting a trail and I didn’t call the hounds off until it was

‘He gave advice on how to use trail hunting, in his own words, as a smokescreen’

too late’,” said Mr Gordon.

“So that is what the prosecution say Mr Hankinson was encouraging.”

Mr Hankinson’s defence applied to have the video evidence struck out, on the grounds that it was obtained by fraud. This was refused by Tan Ikram, the deputy senior district judge.

The case was brought after a complaint by the League Against Cruel Sports. The trial continues.