Tuesday 3 September 2013

DAY 18: High visibility patrols in Windsor to prevent illegal fishing and poaching


The team in Windsor aimed to tackle wildlife crimes like illegal fishing and poaching in a two-phase enforcement operation with the Environment Agency which ran from 4pm until 3am last Friday night (31/8).
Phase one: 4pm – 8pm
Officers and PCSOs worked with the Environment Agency officers patrolling the Jubilee River and a number of lakes in and around the Datchet, Horton and Wraysbury areas. They were on the lookout for signs of illegal fishing along the waterways.
The exercise was productive with a number of people being stopped and spoken to letting them know about the work the team were doing. In addition to this, three people were reported by the Environment Agency for illegal fishing and six more were given advice by the Agency for the same offence.
An illegal crayfish net was also found in the lake owned by Wraysbury Dive Centre. This was seized by the Environment Agency not least because of the danger it posed to the divers!



Windsor team: officers, PCSOs and the Environment Agency

Phase two: 7pm – 3am
The Windsor police officers, Great Park Wardens and local farmers ran a proactive operation targeting trespass and poaching. The team also targeted vehicles carrying plant machinery as well as HGVs and vans with the aim of finding people linked to rural crime.
From 7pm until 10pm two officers from the mounted section (that’s the horses to you and me!), did a high-visibility patrol on the Great Park. They worked alongside the wardens patrolling the main areas where poaching, hunting and anti-social behaviour occurs.
Around 10 vehicles and up to 15 people were stopped however no arrests were made, no stolen property was found but no rural crime was reported either!


Mounted section patrol with the park wardens as it's getting dark

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