A poacher was slapped with a €5,000 fine and banned for life from holding a hunting or trapping licence after admitting to having shot down a protected bird last Thursday. 

Anthony Galea, 56, from Mosta, was arrested after police received a tip-off that a protected bird had been shot at around 7.30am in Mellieħa's Aħrax area.

The poacher with the shot bird in one hand and his gun in the other. Photo: BirdLife Malta

In a statement, BirdLife Malta claimed that footage shot by one of its members had led to Mr Galea's arrest. In the video, a poacher can be seen collecting a dead bird from the ground, his hunting rifle tucked under his arm, before hiding the bird in the bushes. 

"This case is to serve as a warning to all and sundry," the court, presided by magistrate Joseph Mifsud remarked, while urging all responsible hunters to collaborate with the police so as to assist the latter in their clampdown on illegal poaching.

The court observed that in this case, the police had received a tip-off regarding the shooting down of a Eurasian stone-curlew, locally known as a tellerita early on Thursday morning, just hours before the close of the hunting season.

Police investigations led to the arrest of the poacher who was today charged with having attempted to shoot down two birds of the same protected species, with having actually killed one of the birds and with having failed to inform the authorities concerned. The man was further charged with being a relapser.

The court heard the testimony of Richard Lia, an official from the Wildlife Regulation Unit, who explained how last Friday he had personally assisted in the identification of the protected prey. The bird had blood near its beak and was also wounded on one of its wings.

After taking note of the accused's guilty plea as well as the fact that this was not his first hunting incident, the court declared the man guilty and condemned him to a fine of €5,000, payable in €140 monthly instalments. Furthermore, the court ordered the permanent revocation of the hunter's licence and the confiscation of the hunting weapon.

"I could send you to prison for one year," the magistrate pointed out. However "fines serve as a sufficient deterrent and this court wants to send out a clear message."

The court pointed out that it did not object to the enjoyment of hunters' rights, however it would not tolerate criminal behaviour. "Nature is to be enjoyed by all and everyone has the right to enjoy the beauty of a bird in flight," the magistrate concluded.

Inspector Colin Sheldon prosecuted. Lawyer Alfred Abela was defence counsel.

In its statement, BirdLife Malta said that by the end of the hunting season last Friday, at least 15 protected birds had been shot. It also noted that Wild Birds Regulation Unit head Sergei Golovkin had been quoted as saying that just 130 quails - the only species that could be legally hunted during the season - had been shot. 

"So by the WBRU’s own admission," BirdLife Malta said, "this means that 10 per cent of the birds known to have been shot this spring season (15 out of a total of 145) were illegally targeted protected birds."