Police ruined my life and they didn’t even speak to me, says farmer cleared of promoting illegal hunts
Huntsman says authorities faced ‘political pressure’ from trolls and activists as conviction is overturned
‘They were put under such pressure by trolls on social media, they were so bombarded that they thought they had to do something’
WHEN Mark Hankinson was convicted of encouraging illegal fox hunting his world fell apart and the sport he loves was tarnished.
He fell into the “abyss” as his case was used as an “excuse” to ban legal trail hunting by major landowners, to influence politicians and to launch criminal investigations into hunts.
But throughout an almost two-year ordeal that resulted in his conviction for encouraging illegal hunting being overturned this week, one thing remains a surprise: he was never spoken to by police officers.
Mr Hankinson believes that police and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) charged him because of “political” pressure from internet trolls and animal-rights activists.
“I am just flabbergasted that the police managed to ruin my life without ever even speaking to me,” the former director of the Masters of Foxhounds Association (MFHA) told The Daily Telegraph in his first interview.
His case centred around footage from an invitation-only webinar in which Mr Hankinson’s use of the word “smokescreen” was taken out of context and seized upon by opponents of hunting. The video was published online, leaked to the press and in the midst of a social media campaign a police investigation was launched.
Hunt saboteurs saw it as their “gotcha” moment in a decades-long battle. Activists said that in the “post-webinar era” they had proved trail hunting was just a front for illegal activity.
Some of Britain’s biggest landowners suspended the sport. The case has been cited in council chambers across the country to try to persuade politicians to outlaw huntsmen.
Then came the bans. Natural Resources Wales and the National Trust both announced that packs were no longer welcome. A wrongful conviction had achieved what Parliament had never voted for.
“It was demoralising for everybody, especially as we felt like a lot of the institutions and land owners folded far too quickly,” the 62-year-old said.
“A lot of them, especially the National Trust, were looking for an excuse and this was the perfect. They were desperate to ban it because of the pressure they were put under by activists. They didn’t want the hassle.”
Despite his successful appeal, the trust will not be revisiting the decision, which was voted on by members at their annual meeting. It said there were “many contributing factors in our decision”.
Prosecutions of individual hunts followed in its wake, two of which have collapsed because of a lack of evidence. “It is too late for me, I have lost my job, I can’t turn the clock back. I am obviously glad that I have been cleared, but it has destroyed my life and I don’t want cases like this to destroy the lives of any other huntsmen,” Mr Hankinson said.
“I really hope that if anything comes from this the CPS will look long and hard before they jump in and prosecute people based on the spurious allegations of activists. They need to look at the evidence provided to them by sabs [saboteurs] with an unprejudiced eye.”
The Dorset farmer, who spent 18 years as a huntsman before joining the MFHA first as an inspector and then its director, had no idea his comments in an online training talk had been made public until he was contacted by journalists. It was alleged in court that the footage had been “illegally obtained” by animal-rights activists who had hacked into the emails of a hunt master.
The Hunting Office, the activity’s executive arm, was informed of the police investigation but “to this day” Mr Hankinson had “never, ever spoken to any of the investigating officers”.
He provided a written statement through his lawyers and the “next thing that I know” he was being charged.
“Why me?” Mr Hankinson asked. “My view is that they were put under such pressure by trolls on social media, that they were so bombarded, they thought that they had to do something.”
Devon and Cornwall Police said last night that it had not spoken to Mr Hankinson in person because of the pandemic. A spokesman said the force “investigated this matter thoroughly and without fear or favour. We have no concerns over the quality of the investigation, and any matters relating to the subsequent charging and trial process is for the CPS to address.
A CPS spokesman said: “We charged this case – as we do all our cases – after it met our legal test for a prosecution. Political considerations or comments on social media played no part in our decision making.” Mr Hankinson received a summons to Plymouth magistrates’ court, but it was moved to Westminster.
“Why did they move it to London?” he wonders. “I think that the whole thing has been driven by political pressure being brought to bear on the police and the CPS.” Mr Hankinson continues to tell the same story. The description of the trail as a “smokescreen” is not to hide illegal activity, but to confuse saboteurs who follow hunts, to persuade them on a different route.
“What has been so often forgotten is that this was a webinar about trying to help people deal with aggressive sabs,” he said. They have to contend with “gangs of people dressed in black, wearing balaclavas, walking down the street intimidating people including children and the elderly”.
“This would not be allowed anywhere but the countryside,” Mr Hankinson believes. “We have developed tactics so we can deal with the problem and go about our lawful activity.”
Despite his explanation, the deputy chief magistrate found him guilty in October and he resigned from the MFHA. “My whole world faltered. It wasn’t just like losing a job, my whole way of life disappeared,” he said. “This was my passion, I lived and breathed it.”
A judge at Southwark Crown Court on Wednesday overturned that conviction, saying his words were “capable of more than one interpretation” and saying his account had “credibility”.
“I have to accept where I am and be grateful that I have cleared my name,” Mr Hankinson said.
Now he can only hope that those who were so quick to suspend hunting will take the same decisive action now that he has been exonerated.