Three men have been cleared of hunting offences over an incident which was captured on video by anti-hunt activists. 

Master of the Dunston Harriers hunt Geoffrey Block, huntsman in charge of the hounds Josh Worthington-Hayes and whipper-in Lewis Ryland were accused of breaches of the Hunting Act 2004.

Beccles & Bungay Journal: Dunston Harriers huntsmen and hounds captured on video at Fersfield on January 18 2022Dunston Harriers huntsmen and hounds captured on video at Fersfield on January 18 2022 (Image: YouTube/Norfolk/Suffolk Hunt Saboteurs)

It follows an incident on January 18 last year when hounds chased a wild hare on fields at Fersfield, near Diss, during a scent trail hunt.

All three appeared at Great Yarmouth Magistrates Court on Thursday having previously denied illegally hunting a wild mammal with dogs.

Prosecutor Lilly Orr said they had not done enough to call off the dogs which were only brought back under control 25 minutes later.

Video footage from anti-hunt activists played in court showed the pack of 30 hounds pursuing the hare while the huntsmen watched on. 

Beccles & Bungay Journal: Video footage captures the Dunston Harriers hounds hunting a wild hare at Fersfield on January 18 2022Video footage captures the Dunston Harriers hounds hunting a wild hare at Fersfield on January 18 2022 (Image: YouTube/Norfolk/Suffolk Hunt Saboteurs)

Hunt monitor Joseph Lagran told the court another huntswoman had attempted to block his view to stop him filming it.  

Under cross-examination Mr Worthington-Hayes, 31, who now lives in Rutland and is no longer employed by Dunston Harriers, admitted he knew the area had a hare population and that it was “risky” to take hounds across it 

But denying he and Mr Ryland, 23, had not done enough to control the dogs, he said: “I tried to stop them as quickly as I could.”

Beccles & Bungay Journal: Former Dunston Harriers whipper-in Josh Worthington-Hayes at Great Yarmouth Magistrates CourtFormer Dunston Harriers whipper-in Josh Worthington-Hayes at Great Yarmouth Magistrates Court (Image: Newsquest)

Mr Block, 59, of Henstead, near Beccles, said there had been no intention to hunt hares.
During a police interview he had claimed the video footage had been “cleverly edited” to take out efforts to control the hounds.

Stephen Welford, defending, said: “If you go into the countryside where there is a healthy hare population that is a risk. It’s reckless, but it is not intentional hunting.”

Finding all three not guilty, magistrates said: “We believe they acted as expeditiously as they could to bring the dogs back under control.”