Man arrested after more than 50 dead animals found dumped outside village shop in UK county

UK Police investigating the bodies of 50 dead hares found outside a community shop in Hampshire, arrested a man from Southampton on Thursday. The 37-year-old suspect from Totton has been charged with seven offences and remains in custody, said Hampshire and Isle of Wight police.

The incident, which sent shockwaves through the community of the county, took place earlier this month when bodies of 50 hares, a barn owl and a kestrel were found outside Broughton Community Shop.

Upon examination, police found that both the owl and kestrel had been shot with a gun. The birds are legally protected under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. Hence, the man (whose name is not yet revealed) has been arrested on suspicion of criminal damage, night poaching, the killing of a brown hare in the closed season and the killing of a Schedule 1 bird.

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The man has also been charged with an offence under the Firearms Act, an offence under the Public Order Act and an offence under the Animal Welfare Act.

Hampshire & Isle of Wight Country Watch sergeant Stuart Ross said, "Since this incident took place, we have been actively pursuing a number of lines of enquiry and working with partner agencies to establish the circumstances of what happened.”

"We are grateful for the help we have received from the local community and we'd like to thank them for their patience while we investigate what happened."

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The police authorities said that they believe some people with additional information about the incident haven’t come forward yet, and they urge people to do so as soon as possible.

The volunteers for Broughton Community Shop found the dumped animals scattered outside their building on March 15. Soon, the disturbing visuals of dead hares spread like wildfire on social media and people despised the act in unison.

In another case from February, a decapitated deer was found among wild animals close to a primary school in a nearby village. A total of 25 dead animals were discovered on a road in the village of Awbridge, which is six miles away from Broughton.

(With inputs from agencies)