January 20, 2020 2.41 pm This story is over 50 months old

Two men used dogs to kill deer on farm near Gainsborough

They have been banned from the area

Two men used dogs to kill deer on a private farm near Gainsborough on Christmas eve last year.

Scott Hayes, 24, and Christopher Darwin, 28 from Doncaster were found guilty of illegal deer hunting at Grimsby Magistrates’ Court.

Humberside Police attended East Lound near Haxey to reports of men chasing deer with lurcher type dogs.

Officers found a freshly killed male roe deer near to the area and, upon inspection, they found that it had been attacked by dogs.

Both men were found guilty by the court and given a one-year community order with 300 hours of unpaid work, a three-year Criminal Behaviour Order and fined £435.

As a result of the CBO, the men cannot cause harassment, enter a private farm with a dog illegally or enter the Humberside Police area.

Chief Inspector Paul Butler said: “This court result should send out a very clear message to those who commit wildlife offences that we take these offences seriously.

“The obtaining of CBOs, in this case, provides other police forces with a straight forward tool to deal with these men if they choose to commit wildlife offences.”