A 20-year-old man has been charged under the Protection of Wild Mammals (Scotland) Act by officers from Police Scotland’s East Lothian Community Action Team (ELCAT) following a report of hare coursing at farmland near Longniddry on Tuesday.
Police have appealed for help to trace two other men who were seen in the area around the time of this incident.
Sergeant John Forrester who is part of ELCAT based in Haddington said: “It is completely unacceptable to use dogs for hare coursing and I can assure the public that we will do everything in our power to trace those who participate in this illegal act.
“It is thanks to the information passed to us by the public that we were able to detain and then charge a 20-year-old man under the Protection of Wild Mammals (Scotland) Act and he is expected to appear before the courts at a later date.
“We will always act on intelligence that has been passed to us and I would urge anyone who has information on hare coursing to please contact police as soon as possible on 101.”
John graduated from Telford College in 2010 with an HNC in Practical Journalism and since then he worked for the North Edinburgh News, The Southern Reporter, the Irish News Review and The Edinburgh Reporter. In addition he has been published in the Edinburgh Evening News and the Hibernian FC Programme.