Recreational hunters arrested in Attinghausen
In Attinghausen, two recreational hunters were arrested during a traffic check after being found with prohibited weapon components. The Uri Cantonal Police is investigating.
In the early hours of Tuesday, 15 September 2020, shortly after 12:30 a.m., the Uri Cantonal Police carried out a general traffic check, during which a passenger vehicle with Uri licence plates was stopped and inspected in Attinghausen.
The vehicle contained two men who were carrying various hunting utensils and several prohibited components compatible for use with these weapons. On suspicion of violating the Weapons Act and the Hunting Act, the two Uri residents were temporarily arrested in Attinghausen.
On the orders of the Uri Public Prosecutor's Office, the Uri Cantonal Police subsequently carried out several house searches with the assistance of game wardens. In the process, several firearms and weapon accessories, ammunition and explosives, an allegedly illegally shot wild animal skull and its venison were seized and secured.
The alleged poachers — two Swiss recreational hunters aged 45 and 58 — hold valid hunting licences. The accused were released from police custody following their interrogation.
The Uri Public Prosecutor's Office has launched an investigation into violations of hunting legislation and the Weapons/Explosives Act. The investigation is being conducted by the Uri Cantonal Police.
Poaching refers to the unauthorised hunting and trapping of wild animals. Historically, poachers have also been referred to as hunting or game offenders, game thieves, and game pilferers. Despite all romanticised notions surrounding poaching, it must not be overlooked that poachers were often criminals who placed little value on human life. This is attested to by the many documented cases of murdered foresters and hunting wardens.
In Switzerland, poaching is addressed under Art. 17 (misdemeanor: custodial sentence or fine) and Art. 18 (infraction: monetary penalty) of the Swiss Hunting Act.
More on the subject of recreational hunting: In the dossier Poaching and hunting crime in Switzerland we document cases, legal questions and recurring patterns. The scientific evidence is presented in the overview Studies on the Effects of Recreational Hunting.
The position of IG Wild beim Wild: IG Wild beim Wild rejects recreational hunting. Our model is the canton of Geneva, which has managed without recreational hunting since 1974: without hunting seasons, without hunting dogs, without driven hunts, without high seats, without the animal cruelty and crime that go hand in hand with hunting season elsewhere. What has worked there for over fifty years disproves every position paper by JagdSchweiz. An association that bases its policy on claims it refutes in its own documents is not a professional organisation, but a factory for misinformation.
