THREE men accused of hunting badgers with dogs lied under oath in a tale concocted to protect themselves, a court heard.
Stephen Baker, 38, of Overpool Road, Ellesmere Port, Stephen Butler, 30, of Cedar Gardens, Queensferry, and Stephen Fowell, 30, of Whitfield Street, Tranmere, appeared at Wallasey Magistrates’ Court.
They are accused of badger digging on farmland in Pensby in October.
Prosecutors alleged they fled the scene when officers approached, leaving a dog trapped underground in a badger sett.
The trio deny the charges, saying they ran away because they knew they were trespassing.
They admitted trespassing on the land up to three times to rescue the dog.
Police were called to the scene after witnesses at nearby Pensby School saw three men with a terrier on the farmland in Pensby.
Paula Grogan, prosecuting, told the court how the three men, who are not members of recognised terrier clubs, failed to take warnings about possible badger activity on the site.
She said: “To hunt on a piece of land, you must obey rules.
“You firstly must obtain written permission to hunt, be a member of a working terrier club, be able to identify badger sites on the land and give reliable evidence of your name and address, if stopped by the police.
“What you are telling the court today is nonsense because you were there to try to get a badger.”
The men claimed that they had been interested in visiting the land to hunt for rats, rabbits and a fox.
Stephen Baker told the court how he had been familiar with the area of land and had been intrigued by fox holes he had found on a previous visit.
“I went to the land because there was a nice fox earth there. I could tell by the size of the hole and it stank of fox,” he said.
“I checked the hole first and then the dog went down it
“I am more interested in foxes and rats than badgers. I am not a badger baiter and have even worked with Clwyd Badger Group.”
Baker then told how he was forced to dig the hole when he found that the terrier was missing.
He said: “I tried using my locator and put my arm in to the hole. I was a few inches away, it was so frustrating. I then decided to dig the dog out.”
The dog was recovered three hours later by officers in a hole on the other side of the field.
Following an examination of the scene Wirral Wildlife Officer, Malcolm Ingham, found a recently dug manmade hole with a large chamber.
Ms Grogan added: ” Pathways and snuffle holes were indicative of the fact that badgers had been there. Officers also found that the lurcher had recent scratches on its face and they were covered in fresh earth.”
No signs of fox activity were found at the location.
The Reverend and Worshipful Professor Doctor Barry Peachey (dressed as a priest in a bid to appear more creditable) was called as a defence witness.
On 27/7/2002 Stephen Baker, Stephen Butler and Stephen Fowell were found guilty of badger digging. The judge told the trio it was ” abundantly obvious” they had deliberately set out to hunt badgers. In doing so, he said, they had ransacked the sett and as a result it had since been abandoned by the animals. He also said “I am in no doubt whatsoever that the three men set out on a joint enterprise and deliberately dug into a badger sett. “I’m warning you that these matters go way beyond the custodial threshold.” “You lied about the dog being stuck underground and lied about the smell of fox. These lies are beyond an innocent explanation.”
They were also sentenced to six weeks to run concurrently. The judge also banned the trio from owning a dog for three years.
Source: Liverpool Echo