Police turn to drones to battle poachers

Police drones are being trialled in the fight against illegal activity on Britain’s rivers.

The remote-controlled flying cameras were demonstrated by Wiltshire Police Rural Crime Unit to officials from the Angling Trust and Voluntary Bailiff Service recently.

Now, the Trust’s Building Bridges Project Manager Janusz Kansik has given his full support to the idea. 

“Police regularly use drones in cases where people are missing, and they’re very cost-effective,” he said. “A helicopter could cost up to a few thousand pounds to deploy, whereas putting up a drone only requires a pilot and a few charged batteries. 

“Drones clearly have great advantages, which the Environment Agency may consider beneficial to fisheries enforcement. 

“Currently, the Voluntary Bailiff Service does not use drones, but it has been very interesting to watch the police do so and to be made aware of the massive potential of this technology.

“This is the first time the Rural Crime Team have used a drone for fisheries enforcement, although it is too early at this stage to say if they would be used regularly.”

The larger of the two drones cost in the region of £12,000. It is fitted with state-of-the-art equipment including a thermovision camera which enables activity to be recorded at night. 

The device is manoeuvred by means of a remote control with a built-in monitor that relays back all footage recorded by the cameras.

Although the drones are currently only being trialled by the police, it is hoped that the Environment Agency is not far from getting on board with its own similar scheme.