A prolific poacher who was made subject to a criminal behaviour order (CBO) to curb his illegal hunting has landed himself back in court.
Ryan Spence was caught on Christmas Day after he bagged four rabbits before being spotted by a gamekeeper.
The 36-year-old was banned from walking or driving on private land without the landowner’s express permission after he was caught repeatedly hunting for animals.
Teesside Crown Court heard how Spence dropped the rabbits and left the land when he was confronted by the gamekeeper.
Christopher Morrison, prosecuting, said Spence drove away in one vehicle before getting into a white Corsa van and continuing his attempt to flee the scene which was stopped by police.
He said: “The van appeared again on May 12, when a householder spotted it ‘scoping the area’ with a view to livestock theft.
“The van has a cage in the rear and was scoping the area looking for newly born lambs. He was stopped near Brotton, east Cleveland, it was found that he was also in possession of a Class A drug.”
Mr Morrison said Spence was stopped again for driving whilst disqualified on April 11 following in incident in Richmond before he fled the scene.
Police stopped the defendant as he driving along the A19 at "considerate speed" and arrested him.
Spence, of St Cuthberts Walk, Liverton Mines, near Saltburn, pleaded guilty to breaching his CBO, two charges of driving whilst disqualified and driving without insurance.
Michele Turner, mitigating, said her client had caring responsibilities for his elderly parents and urged the judge to pass a suspended sentence.
Judge Howard Crowson sentenced Spence to a total of 46 weeks in custody, suspended for 18-months.
He said: “These breaches of your CBO represent a rather persistent disregard for an order designed to protect landowners from your persistent attempts to steal from their land.
“It’s a continued risk of criminal behaviour.”
Spence was also banned from driving for three years.
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In September 2022, Spence was made subject to the CBO after being found guilty of hunting wild mammals with dogs.
He was handed a six-month driving ban and just over £1,000 of fines at Scarborough magistrates’ court after he attended private farmland with three dogs in Normanby, near Kirkbymoorside in Ryedale, shortly before 9am on February 15.
Witnesses saw one of the dogs chasing a hare on the land and called the police.
North Yorkshire Police described him as a prolific national offender, having previously been convicted of a number of poaching offences in North Yorkshire, East Yorkshire, Norfolk and Scotland.
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