Bromley police wants help to catch badger baiters
BROMLEY police is asking residents to be on the lookout for people disturbing badger setts after evidence of a number of baiting bids in the borough recently.
As these pictures show they include in Hoblingwell Wood, St Paul’s Cray, where a 4ft wide by 9ft deep hole has been dug in an attempt to get at the animals.
Wildlife crime officer PC John Blackman is urging anyone who notices any suspicious activity to report it immediately.
He said: “Badger baiting is a horrible crime and I would urge anyone who suspects the crime is taking place to contact police.
“Where we have information leading us to suspect that people may be involved in this kind of barbaric, deliberate cruelty to animals we will investigate along with colleagues from the RSPCA.
“Badger baiting inflicts terrible suffering on both the badgers and often the dogs, which are almost always badly injured and often don’t receive any veterinary treatment for those injuries.
“If you see something that looks out of place in the more rural areas of the borough, it probably is. We will act immediately on information received.”
Under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 it is an offence to dig for a badger or damage a badger sett.
Anyone with any information should contact PC Blackman on 020 8284 8857 or email him at
john.blackman@met.police.uk or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.
