Wildlife crimes 505/2023

FOI Reference: 505.2023

Request:

Under Freedom of Information Act/Environmental Information Regulations, I would like to request the following information from;

• 1^st January 2020 through to 31^st December 2020 inclusive
• 1^st January 2021 through to 31^st December 2021 inclusive
• 1^st January 2022 through to 31^st December 2022 inclusive.

1. The number of wildlife crimes your force has investigated during these dates?
2. During the time frames, how many of these crimes relate to the act of poaching:

• Deer
• Hare

3. During the time frames, how many crimes involved the illegal killing /persecution of Raptors / birds of prey?
4. What species of bird of prey have been investigated as being killed?
5. During these time frames, how many crimes involved other birds, and what species of bird were involved?
6. Did the crime result in a conviction, if so, what was the resulting fine or sentence for that conviction?

I would like you to provide this information in email format, giving the date, the type of crime, either poaching or Raptor persecution / illegal killing. The type of animal or bird, if the suspect was convicted and what the sentence or was consisted of, and the fine or sentence issued, or if it is easier for you to fill in the excel spreadsheet below.

Date	Crime. Poaching / Raptor crime	Type of bird or animal involved	Poached, poisoned, shot, other	Was there a conviction Yes / No	Fine or Sentence

Response 1:

I can confirm that Dyfed-Powys Police does hold the information requested, as outlined below.

Timeframe	Incidents
01.01.2020 – 31.12.2020	3
01.01.2021 – 31.12.2021	14
01.01.2022 – 31.12.2022	6

Response 2:

I can confirm that Dyfed-Powys Police does hold the information requested, as outlined below.

Poaching	Crimes
Deer	0
Hare	0

Response 3:

I can confirm that Dyfed-Powys Police does hold the information requested, as outlined below.

Illegal killing/persecution of Raptors/birds of prey	Crimes
01.01.2020 – 31.12.2020	4

Response 4:

I can confirm that Dyfed-Powys Police does hold the information requested, as outlined below.

Species of bird of prey investigated as being killed	Number
Raptor	1
Buzzard	1
Falcon	1
Peregrine Falcon	1

Response 5:

I can confirm that Dyfed-Powys Police does hold the information requested, as outlined below.

1 incident involving a flock of Starlings.

Response 6:

I can confirm that Dyfed-Powys Police does hold the information requested, as outlined below.

1 person was charged. The sentence was imprisonment for 18 weeks. Costs of £85, deprivation, disqualification relating to animals for 10 years and a victim surcharge of £154

                                                                                                         

It should be noted that as a result of the systems adopted by Dyfed-Powys Police in relation to the recording of such information that the information released may or may not be accurate.

Furthermore, it should also be noted that Police forces in the United Kingdom are routinely required to provide crime statistics to government bodies and the recording criteria is set nationally. However, the systems used for recording these figures are not generic, nor are the procedures used locally in capturing the crime data. It should be noted that for these reasons this force's response to your questions should not be used for comparison purposes with any other response you may receive.

(This is a response under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and disclosed on 25/01/2024)