Nazi salutes and intimidation at Shropshire fox hunt clashes

In information released by West Mercia Police it has been revealed that incidents with members of suspected local fox hunts have seen reports of fiery clashes and intimidation.

One incident in Ellesmere at the beginning of this year saw police being rung after reports of “racially or religiously aggravated intentional harassment, alarm or distress.”

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In the report it found that the victim was monitoring the Wynnstay Fox Hunt group and was spotted by a member of the group.

The report then said that she was approached by a male member of the hunt who was reported to be “racially abusive towards the victim” by “Nazi saluting her” and “calling her Fuhrer”.

This apparently went on for five minutes and “caused the victim a great deal of intimidation, harassment and distress”.

In this case the offender was “charged under the alternate offence rule”.

In another clash in Kinnerley, Police were called to an incident that involved “assault without injury” this came after a woman reported that a member of the North Shropshire Hunt “purposely backed her horse into the victim” and the victim also reported “illegal fox hunting” taking place in the area.

In this case no suspect could be found neither was there in a report of a hunt in the Dudleston Heath area where there were reports of the “Wynnstay 'hunt' taking place on land nearby” where witnesses “observed hound in full cry” and saw a “fox running from cover” and “heard a transmission on a spectators 'walkie talkie' to confirm that a fox had been killed.”

In this incident Police found that “no fox has seen to be killed” and that the Wynnstay Hunt had “packed up and gone away”.