The Grumpy Vegan invites you to read between the lines (emphasis added in bold) of today’s Guardian report, “Two hen harriers dead, one prince questioned, no charges.”
It started as a quiet evening watching two of England’s rarest birds of prey wheeling in the air over Dersingham nature reserve in Norfolk. The reserve’s warden and two visitors gazed in admiration as the hen harriers circled slowly. Then came the muffled blast of a shotgun and the first bird fell from view. Then another shot, and the second bird plummeted down.
The shots came from the Queen’s estate bordering the reserve at Sandringham, and the warden immediately raised the alarm. Norfolk police found themselves investigating the illegal killing of two protected birds of prey by someone on the royal family’s land – offences which carry a six-month jail sentence or a £5,000 fine.
Last night, nearly two weeks after the hen harriers were shot on Wednesday October 24, the Crown Prosecution Service confirmed that Prince Harry, third in line to the throne, had been interviewed as an official suspect by police, along with William van Cutsem, 28, a family friend, and David Clarke, 58, a Sandringham gamekeeper.
Despite an intensive police inquiry, no charges could be brought because “the bodies of the hen harriers have not been found”. As a result, there was no forensic or ballistic evidence to study. And since all three suspects denied any knowledge of the incident, and there was no eyewitness testimony of who had fired the fatal shots, the case was closed. But, added the CPS, no one else was being sought.
Andrew Baxter, a senior CPS lawyer, said: “I am satisfied the police investigation has been thorough and there are no other areas of investigation which can be pursued.”
The implication in the agency’s statement that the dead birds’ bodies were removed – an act routinely encountered during investigations into wildlife crime – infuriated conservationists last night. A spokesman for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, which counts the Queen as its patron, said: “We’re under no doubt that a crime was committed. The fact that no bodies could be found is extremely disappointing. For nobody to be brought to book for the deaths of two hen harriers is also extremely disappointing. We’re concerned, but not surprised, that no evidence could be found.”
The Guardian revealed last week that Prince Harry and a member of the van Cutsems, a family with close ties to Prince Charles, had been interviewed as part of the police inquiry. Officials at his father’s official residence, Clarence House, confirmed that “because Prince Harry and a friend were both in the area at the time, the police have been in contact with them and asked them if they have any information that could help. Unfortunately, they’ve no knowledge of the alleged incident.”Sandringham officials later admitted to the Guardian that the prince and his two companions were the only people out shooting on the 20,000-acre estate, hunting duck and pigeon close to the Natural England wildlife reserve. But Marcus O’Lone, the Queen’s estate manager, claimed the failure to find the birds’ bodies suggested they had never actually been shot. “I just can’t believe it will have happened,” he told the Guardian last week. “At the end of the day these are allegations. The police are investigating it and we will have to await the results of their inquiries.”
But yesterday, the CPS said it had no doubt the birds had been shot. And, it revealed, the prince and his companions were also questioned over the illegal use of lead shot over the nature reserve – an inquiry hampered by the removal of the ducks which had been shot.
“The bodies of the hen harriers have not been found and there is no forensic or ballistic evidence. Witnesses also heard unexplained shooting in the area before the three suspects said they were present at the scene, so other people cannot be ruled out. The three suspects, who were interviewed by police, all denied that the birds were killed by them.
“The question of whether cartridges containing lead shot were used in breach of environmental protection regulations was considered, but as the bodies of wildfowl which were shot had been removed from the scene by the time the police arrived, it is not possible to say if this was the case. The three suspects denied any breach of the regulations.”
There are thought to be only 20 breeding pairs of hen harrier in England, compared to 500 elsewhere in the UK, and it is one of only two birds of prey on the “red list” of endangered species. Last night, the chairman of Natural England, Sir Martin Doughty, said his staff were disappointed there would be no conviction. This form of illegal persecution was “the greatest theat” to the bird’s long-term survival, he said.
“Every year hen harriers are killed illegally … but successful prosecutions are incredibly rare. Natural England will redouble its efforts to build a future for this rare and beautiful bird of prey. We want to try to find ways to bring back hen harriers while having viable countryside pursuits.”
