Car seized after reports of illegal hare coursing in Irchester and Wollaston

The red Suzuki Vitara was recovered in Irchester last month using powers under Section 59 of the Police Reform Act, and was also found to have no insurance.

It had come to the attention of rural crime officers at Northamptonshire Police after reports that it had been seen being used in the illegal pursuit of hares using dogs.

Rural crime officer PC Paul Mitchinson said: “Thanks to the vigilance of the people who reported this vehicle being used to hunt hares to us, we were able to use legal powers to seize it and prevent it from being used in any further illegal activity.

“After it was recovered we had a lot of messages from people saying they had seen it being used this way, but they hadn’t reported it us.

“If we don’t know something is happening, we can’t act, so I’d urge anyone who sees or knows about something like hare coursing taking place to let the police know by calling 999 if it’s happening at the time, or reporting it via 101 or online after the event so we can take action.

“This seizure shows that we do investigate such reports.

"The vital details we need are the vehicle registration, make and model, as well as where the activity is taking place – the What3Words app is really useful for pinpointing exact rural locations. Information about the number of people and dogs involved, and their descriptions, is also really helpful.”