Wiltshire Police have launched a county-wide crackdown on rural crime as part of a national awareness week, with support from the county’s police commissioner.
The force has pledged a whole-force response to tackle offences including hare coursing, poaching, agricultural theft and fly-tipping. The initiative brings together neighbourhood teams, specialist units, partner agencies and local communities.
Philip Wilkinson, Police and Crime Commissioner for Swindon and Wiltshire, wants to see the campaign bring offenders to justice.
“Hare coursing is a brutal, illegal activity that devastates our countryside,” he said. “It’s not merely a wildlife crime, it’s organised criminality that threatens the safety, livelihoods and peace of rural communities.
“Recent violent confrontations and property damage underline how serious this has become. Current penalties – an unlimited fine and up to six months’ imprisonment – are simply not enough. I’ve written to the Wiltshire Magistrates’ Bench and backed national efforts to strengthen sentencing guidelines.
“Victims of rural crime deserve justice that truly reflects the harm inflicted.”
Between September 2024 and February 2025, Devizes accounted for 36 per cent of Wiltshire’s hare coursing and poaching incidents, a rise of 22 per cent compared to the same period the previous year.
Of 177 offences logged, 64 were in the Devizes policing area, with peak activity recorded on Thursday and Monday nights around midnight, and Saturday afternoons.
Agricultural theft was concentrated in Salisbury and Warminster, each accounting for 21 per cent of Wiltshire’s farm burglaries. In February alone, 31 thefts were reported, compared with just seven in the same month the previous year.
Investigations revealed that most suspects travelled into Wiltshire from other areas, including Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Cardiff, Kent and Bristol.
Since the start of the year, Wiltshire Police has run 22 rural crime operations. These included Operation Galileo deployments targeting hare coursing and Operation Ragwort campaigns which stopped more than 100 vehicles in March.
Joint actions with Wiltshire Council and the Environment Agency have also focused on illegal waste carrying and fly-tipping.
The force’s Armed Response Unit has been tasked with pursuing hare coursers and dealing with high-risk confrontations.
T/Chief Inspector Andrew Lemon, Tactical Lead for Rural Crime, said: “We’re mobilising neighbourhood officers, drones, CID and armed units to hit offenders at every stage.
“This sends a clear message that rural crime is treated with the seriousness it deserves, and we will not tolerate incursions on our countryside.”
Recent results include 15 vehicles seized, six suspected stolen machines recovered and 22 arrests for poaching – a 500 per cent increase on the previous year. More than £40,000 in grants has funded equine tagging kits and drone technology, while 156 intelligence reports have supported proactive police operations.
T/Chief Inspector Lemon added: “We need residents to report suspicious activity as soon as they see it, either online, by calling 101, or in an emergency by dialling 999.
“This information helps build intelligence, target offenders and keep our countryside safe.”
Mr Wilkinson felt the partnership was important: “Together, we are making Wiltshire a hostile environment for rural criminals and organised networks.
“With your support and our determined whole-force policing response, we will defend our farms, wildlife and rural way of life throughout Rural Crime Action Week and beyond.”
