Two poachers have been banned from owning or keeping dogs for three years in what prosecutors described as a legal first. Police said David Hilden, 39, and 35-year-old Tyron Young were stopped by officers while walking with four dogs across crop fields on October 15 2022.
Two of the dogs were lurchers on slip leads. The force said there were no public footpaths in the area, on Peacock Hill near Littlebury, Saffron Walden, and the landowner had not given the men permission to be on the land.
Both men admitted a charge of daytime trespass in pursuit of game at Colchester Magistrates’ Court, Essex Police said. The court was told they had travelled to the area from south London with dogs which were to be used to poach game.
