A hunter found himself in hot water when he turned up near a police patrol just as a protected eagle was shot down, but BirdLife volunteers who were close by quickly confirmed that he was not the one who pulled the trigger, a court heard this morning.

The court was hearing evidence against Justin Chetcuti, 23, from Mosta, another man who was eventually accused of shooting down the rare booted-eagle last November 2.

A member of the police Administrative Law Enforcement unit testified how he and colleagues had been patrolling the area of Tal-Virtu and Wied tal-Isqof in Rabat, when they observed three eagles flying low.

He then heard shots and soon noticed that one of the birds was gliding down. The protected bird, which had evidently been hit, landed close to the police Land Rover.

A hunter suddenly appeared and approached the police officers. He insisted that he was not the culprit.

Birdlife volunteers, who were keeping watch over the area at the time confirmed that the man who had allegedly shot down the eagle was indeed someone else. They had observed the culprit, a bare-chested man, through a telescope and had even recorded him on camera.

The witness recalled how he had searched for the accused who was soon traced, disarmed and taken in for questioning.

The officer recognized the accused as the man whom he had arrested.

Inspector Pierguido Saliba prosecuted.

Lawyers Matthew Bondin and Maroushka Debono were defence counsel.