A member of a local hunt club was before Castlebar District Court on Wednesday as he imported 12 illegal animal traps over the internet. The prosecution was brought by the Department of Arts, Heritage and The Gaeltacht.
Brendan Keady, Dalgan Park, Shrule, represented himself and pleaded guilty. He said that he bought the traps, which he did not know were illegal, over the internet from America for €106. Keady said he was going to use them in a hunting area to catch mink and fox.
An Post intercepted the parcel and contacted Customs, which in turn contacted the wildlife services.
The unemployed man was convicted and fined €150 and the forfeiture and destruction of the traps was ordered.
