The excellent site at Raptor Persecution UK is reporting that the poisoned White-tailed Eagle discovered in Dorset a year ago was found on the same estate on which a recently convicted gamekeeper operated. The gamekeeper had previously been found in possession of six shot buzzards and banned poisons. This does not of course mean that either the convicted gamekeeper and the estate had anything whatsoever to do with the death of the White-tailed Eagle.

The reason that we are mentioning this case at all (as it concerns primarily raptors) is the questions is raises about the apparent U turn in the police investigation, the sudden removal of the award winning Wildlife Crime Officer charged with investigating it and the rebranding of Dorset Police’s previously very effective wildlife crime team.

It is now far too late to pursue the investigation into the poisoning of the White-tailed Eagle but questions need to be asked and satisfactorily answered about the behaviour of senior police officers, the Police and Crime Commissioner and the local MP and whether they may have influenced the way in which the case was suddenly shelved. Clearly neither the Police and Crime Commissioner nor the MP could have had access to details of active police investigations but equally clearly senior police officers did. Basic investigation protocols suggest that the land search organised by the then Wildlife Crime Officer should have gone ahead and the public need to know why it did not.

The failure of the police to satisfactorily carry out investigations affects us all regardless of the specific nature of the crime. The appearance, however wrong, that outside influence, rather than basic investigative protocols (and common sense) may have determined the course of an investigation is a very serious one indeed. The current Chief Constable of Dorset Scott Chilton is a highly experienced detective and says that he is an advocate of evidence-based policing and has a strong desire to ensure policing focuses its efforts on protecting the most vulnerable and targeting those criminals who cause harm and misery to our communities.Now is the time for him to ask for an independent investigation into the handling of this case and the events surrounding it if he wishes the public to have confidence in the force that he leads.

Policing must be seen to be done without fear or favour.