Gamekeeper Jailed For Killing Bird
George Mutch, 48, was sentenced to four months at Aberdeen Sheriff Court after he was convicted of laying illegal traps and killing a goshawk by hitting it with a stick
A gamekeeper has been jailed for trapping and killing birds of prey.
George Mutch, 48, was sentenced to four months at Aberdeen Sheriff Court after he was convicted of laying illegal traps and killing a goshawk by hitting it with a stick.
It is understood to be the first custodial sentence for a wildlife crime inScotland.
Mutch was caught following video monitoring by RSPB officials on the Kildrummy estate near Alford in Aberdeenshire in August 2012.
The footage showed that a jay had been used as a lure in a cage-style trap which had caught a rare goshawk.
Mutch was seen killing the distinctive bird by repeatedly striking it with a stick, the court head.
A second goshawk and a buzzard were also caught in a trap and the gamekeeper was recorded placing them in a sack and carrying them off.
Mutch was convicted of four charges under the Wildlife and Countryside Act on December 11.
Sara Shaw, procurator fiscal for wildlife and the environment, said: "Birds of prey are given strict protection by our law.Goshawks, in particular, are rare birds." The court heard evidence in thiscase that there are only about 150 nesting pairs in Scotland.
"It is highly important to preserve Scotland's natural heritage, including the wildlife that forms part of it. Our environmental laws exist to provide thisprotection. This case involved serious contraventions of those laws. The conviction of Mr Mutch and the severity of the sentence given by the court highlights that message.''
Duncan Orr Ewing, head of species and land management at RSPB Scotland, said: "This sentence is an historic, landmark result. We would like to thank the Crown Office and Police Scotland for helping to bring this case to a successful conviction, as well as the exemplary work of the RSPB Scotland investigations team. This penalty should be a turning point, sending a clear message to those determined to flout our laws that wildlife crime will not be tolerated but instead will be treated with the seriousness that it deserves. Wildlife criminals must expect no sympathy from now on.''