Message from Raptor Persecution UK
20th January 2025
A Scottish gamekeeper has pleaded guilty to a snaring offence and has been fined £1,250.
Thomas Ebner, 74, of Lakeside, Reston, Berwickshire, had previously pleaded not guilty to four charges relating to an incident that took place on land believed to be used by a small shooting syndicate at Old Castles Farm, Chirnside, in the Scottish Borders on April 25th 2023, which resulted in a fox being suspended by its neck in a snare on a broken fence line where it was found foaming at the mouth and thrashing around trying to escape (see here for previous blog on this case).
At the time of the offence, snares were still lawful in Scotland but were not permitted to be set in a position where a trapped animal could be suspended, and users had to first attend a snare training course and then apply for an identification tag that would identify the snare operator and the target species.
Ebner’s previous not guilty plea had led to a trial date being set for 4th February 2025. However, in a pre-trial hearing this morning at Selkirk Sheriff Court, Ebner changed his plea to guilty of one charge and the other three charges were dropped.
I’d argue that Ebner got off lightly. A fine of £1,250 + £75 surcharge is well below the maximum sentence available, which is a custodial sentence of six months and/or a fine of £5,000. So much for those so-called ‘tougher penalties‘ for wildlife crime.
Thankfully, the use of snares in Scotland has now been banned (since 25th November 2024) under the new Wildlife Management & Muirburn (Scotland) Act, thanks to a long-running campaign by animal welfare campaigners who spent decades putting forward evidence that these devices, recently and cynically named ‘humane cable restraints’ by the game-shooting industry, are actually cruel, indiscriminate and inhumane and have no place in modern society.
UPDATE 16.30hrs: Gamekeeper pleads guilty to snaring fox – press release from SSPCA (here)
This evil bastard should be in prison, wonder how he would like to be caught in a snare maybe that should be his punishment let him feel the agony filthy scum.