Two men fined and banned for decade over Lincolnshire hare coursing

Two men have been fined and banned for a decade after admitting hare coursing on farmland in Lincolnshire, as courts and police step up efforts to tackle rural and wildlife crime.

William Finney, 48, and Gavin Lee, 54, appeared at Lincoln Magistrates’ Court on Thursday 22 January, where they pleaded guilty to hunting a wild mammal with a dog, contrary to the Hunting Act 2004.

The offences related to an incident on 11 December 2024, when police received a report of suspected hare coursing in the Dog Dyke area.

Officers were alerted after a man was seen running a greyhound across farmland, while another individual was observed carrying a shotgun.

Police searches of the area led to the discovery of two dead hares. Both men claimed the animals had been shot, but x-rays and post-mortem examinations later showed this was not the case.

Finney and Lee returned to Lincoln Magistrates’ Court the following day for sentencing.

The court imposed separate financial penalties on the two men. Finney was fined a total of £3,885, a figure which included kennelling costs, while Lee received a total fine of £725.

Items used during the offending were also seized and ordered to be forfeited by the court. These included two mobile phones, a dog, a dog collar, two dog leads, a shotgun, a thermal imaging device and four shotgun cartridges.

Both men were also issued with Criminal Behaviour Orders lasting 10 years, placing strict conditions on their future activities and significantly limiting their involvement with dogs and hunting-related equipment.

Police warned that firearms and shotgun certificate holders involved in criminal activity can expect licences to be revoked, adding that officers will always seek to remove certificates where offences are proven.

Hare coursing is a persistent problem for rural communities, often linked to criminal damage, intimidation of landowners and wider organised criminal activity. Police forces across the region have identified it as a priority area for enforcement.

The sentencing comes amid increased police action against wildlife crime, with officers recently disrupting more than 50 suspected poachers and hare coursers during a major weekend operation in Cambridgeshire, involving the use of drones, air support and roadblocks

Police have said they will continue to use specialist resources and court orders to disrupt hare coursing, protect wildlife and reassure farming communities.