Acting Sergeant Nick Bunny, Community and Rural Manager:

Wairarapa Police are stepping up their efforts to target poachers and hope recent convictions encourage rural communities to break the silence.

Police are ramping up patrols on rural roads across the Wairarapa and are stopping all vehicles that they come across, says Acting Sergeant Nick Bunny, Wairarapa Community and Rural Manager.

In the past year, Wairarapa Police have charged a number of people with poaching. Offenders face prosecution in court, having their firearms licence revoked, equipment seized, and firearms destroyed.

“Poaching is a significant issue for our rural communities, and it’s a problem that’s grossly under-reported. Our latest efforts to fight back against it include patrols of rural roads, where we will be stopping vehicles and speaking with the occupants.

“We’re not playing around. Poaching has real effects and offenders will face real-world consequences. If we catch you poaching or illegally hunting, your rifles, ammunition and other equipment will be confiscated, and you could be charged with firearms offences."

Message for rural communities: help us help you

To get a sense of the scale of the poaching problem, Police spoke with farmers and rural communities, Acting Sergeant Bunny said.

“From those discussions we’ve become aware that a lot of unlawful hunting incidents aren’t being reported. A lot of people believe Police are too busy or won’t show up. In those same conversation, almost every farmer we spoke with had a story of hearing gunshots at night, had seen suspicious activity or noticed suspicious vehicles driving on rural roads at odd times.”

Reporting gives Police a valuable insight into where crime and suspicious activity was occurring, Acting Sergeant Bunny said.

“When you report suspicious or illegal activity, it builds a picture for us of where our focus needs to be – we really need the rural community to help us by making those reports as soon as possible.”

Suspicious or illegal activity should be reported to 111 if it’s happening now. If it’s after the fact, make a report online at www.police.govt.nz/use-105 [1] or call 105.

Action by Wairarapa Police has resulted in significant sentences being handed down to convicted poachers.

Earlier this year, a man pleaded guilty to unlawful hunting, entering agricultural land with intent to commit a crime after being caught by Police illegally hunting at an address in Hinakura, South Wairarapa. The firearms and equipment Police seized were destroyed, and the firearms licence holder had his licence revoked.

Police put poachers on notice

“Our focus won’t stop here. With the start of spring, mating season and new grass growth the Wairarapa Rural Policing Team have recently started night patrols, targeting known poaching and illegal hunting areas,” Acting Sergeant Bunny says.

“The Wairarapa is made up of rural farming communities and we need these communities to feel safe and prepared to report poaching or suspicious activity."

Working with farmers

Police are happy to talk to local farmers interested in setting up rural watch networks, or installing cameras to identify poachers and vehicles.

Anyone interested can email: nicholas.bunny@police.govt.nz

For more information on how to safely handle a firearm please follow this link: www.firearmssafetyauthority.govt.nz/firearms-safety/7-rules-firearm-safety

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