Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service News Release
28 June 2010
Two men fined £300 each for killing rabbits with dogs at children's play park
Two men have admitted capturing three wild rabbits and then using dogs to kill them at a children's play park in Dumfries.
Stewart Graham, 21, and Paul Strilciw, 23, pleaded guilty to causing suffering to the animals under the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006 section 19(2) at Dumfries Sheriff Court on 25 June 2010.
Earlier that day (24 May 2010) they caught the three rabbits by using a ferret to flush them from their burrow. Graham and Strilciw then kept the rabbits in a box until the evening. They then took them to the Maryfield playing fields at Westfield Road, Dumfries where they released them and set two greyhounds on them to chase and kill them for the entertainment of their friends.
Parents and children were at the park at the time and witnessed the incident, and parents complained to the police.
The case was prosecuted by specialist wildlife prosecutor Pamela Rhodes.
Speaking after sentencing, Ms Rhodes said:
"This was a calculated act of mindless cruelty, which would have been highly distressing to the children and adults who were in the park at the time.
"These rabbits were protected by the Animal Health and Welfare Act (section 17) from the moment they were captured.
"The rabbits would have been very stressed by being kept in a box all day. They were released only to be savaged and killed by the dogs which were set upon them.
"Crimes against wildlife and involving cruelty to animals are completely unacceptable. Procurators Fiscal will continue to take robust action against anyone committing this type of offence."
Notes to Editors:
1. Stewart Graham and Paul Strilciw were fined £300 each at Dumfries Sheriff Court on 25 June 2010, reduced from £450 to reflect their guilty plea.
2. The maximum sentence for this type of offence is a £20,000 fine or 12 months imprisonment, or both.
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