Blood on their hands

Spotlighters flee the scene of a crime. 

Locals are too scared to walk at dawn and dusk. 

And domestic animals are being felled in cold blood.

No, we’re not talking about the American northwest in the gun-toting days of the 19th century. 

We’re talking about the back blocks of Eden. 

Right here, right now.

And it’s resulting in a war, between hunters. 

On the one side are the ethical hunters who follow strict firearm and licensing guidelines, who hunt for cultural and social reasons, and are engaged by authorities for humane animal culling. 

On the other side are illegal hunters who operate cloak‘n’dagger style, indiscriminately picking off game, ignoring license protocol, trespassing, and posing a grave threat to both  beast and human alike.

And Kiah resident, Clyde Thomas, has had enough. 

“I’m the president of a group called the Australian Conservation Hunters, of which there are 80 members in the Bega Valley Shire,” Mr Thomas said.

“I’m fighting every day to educate people about law abiding firearm ownership and conservation hunting, and our status and reputation is smudged by illegal hunters.”

Mr Thomas’ group is regularly engaged by the National Parks and Wildlife Service and independent farmers to cull feral animals such as foxes, wild dogs, wild pigs and feral cats, a service widely recognised as vital for environmental management.

The eastern grey kangaroo has also reached plague proportions and is regularly culled. 

But the favoured target in the forests surrounding Eden is deer, introduced in the early 1800s. 

“Hunting deer is a long cultural tradition, and an asset to this area if managed right,” Mr Thomas said, sitting proudly in the trophy room of his Kiah home, surrounded by the taxidermied heads of slain beasts.

This is his temple, he said, and hunting is an art. 

“Ninety-nine percent of recreational shooters do the right thing, but there’s a villainous one per cent of mostly dangerous young people who just like to do damage,” Mr Thomas said. 

“And it’s time for the authorities to address it.”

Mark Hetherington, manager of the Boydtown estate, agrees the problem has spiralled out of control. 

“We see spotlights on our private property all the time, and regularly hear gunshots,” Mr Hetheringon said. 

“I drove out one night and found a kangaroo hopping around with its face half blown off. 

"That’s the problem; a lot of these illegal hunters are inexperienced. 

"Someone’s definitely going to get shot one day.”

Scared of becoming a statistic, Mr Thomas' wife, Jennie, has changed her daily routine. 

“I’m too scared to walk around my property now, especially in the early morning,” she said.

For a registered firearm user it’s relatively easy to obtain the restricted license needed to hunt non-indigenous game animals on public land. 

Licensing in the Eden region is managed by the NSW Game Licensing Unit of the Department of Primary Industries (DPI), with the DPI and the NSW Police Far South Coast Local Area Command (FSC LAC) jointly responsible for investigating incidences of illegal hunting.  

With recreational hunting a big revenue earner for the state, and public safety an obvious priority, you’d think this impressive line-up of heavyweights would move quickly to stamp out illegal hunting. 

But incredibly, frightened locals are reporting inaction by authorities that is as perplexing as the crimes themselves.  

“My horse was shot in the middle of the night,” Kiah local, Edith Orman, said. 

“He was shot through the neck, and out one eye. 

"He would have died an agonising death. 

"When I found him the next morning, I could see his hoof marks all over the paddock, where he fell down, got up, fell down again.” 

Ms Orman’s paddock borders the main Eden/Towamba Road, and is clearly not a hunting area. 

The shooting occurred at night, from the road itself, and killed an innocent animal on private property; all illegal.

Devastated, Ms Orman called police. 

“They said they were too busy to come out,” Ms Orman said. 

“The police wanted me to cut up my horse and remove the projectile, for evidence. 

"I told them I couldn’t, it was too emotional. 

"I said ‘you’re welcome to come and do it.’”

But the police never came.

So Ms Orman buried her horse. 

She still has in her possession the police event number allocated to her case by the FSC LAC, which names the detective in charge of the case.  

But when approached by the Eden Magnet, the detective declined to comment.

Of course inaction only makes the crooks bolder. 

Sometimes incredibly bold. 

“One couple parked on the Kiah bridge in the middle of the Princes Highway and shot a deer in my paddock,” Clyde Thomas said. 

“They parked at the Kiah store and walked into my private property to retrieve the deer. 

"We got their car and rego details, which we passed on to [authorities] whose role it is to investigate stock theft. 

"[They did not do] a thing.”  

But it was a second incident, in broad daylight, involving a longtime acquaintance, that’s remained the most harrowing for the Thomas family. 

The man texted Clyde’s brother, Rod Thomas, on the morning of July 5 last year, requesting to shoot a stud stag on Clyde’s private property. 

“There’s a big one outside of your deer trap, can I whack it?” the text asked. 

Rod Thomas texted back “don’t shoot over this side”, warning the hunter that four men were working nearby, and would be in danger. 

“Sorry, too good a stag, gotta take him,” the hunter texted back, killing the deer. 

Clyde Thomas reported the story to police and the DPI, who attended the scene.

Mr Thomas was sure prosecution would follow swiftly.

“I had all the personal and identification information needed, and they took screenshots of the incriminating text messages,” Mr Thomas said. 

“But they did nothing."

He claims the hunter worked for forestry, and was friends with a DPI officer. 

"I believe it was a cover up.”

The DPI’s Game Licensing Unit was also approached by the Eden Magnet but it declined to comment; passing the paper's inquiry to DPI's Public Affairs office. 

“The Department of Primary Industries Game Licensing Unit conducted a thorough investigation into this matter in 2014, and determined there is insufficient evidence to undertake a prosecution,” a NSW DPI spokesman said. 

It was a response almost verbatim to what Mr Thomas received at the time.

Determined for justice, Mr Thomas asked the DPI to return the screenshots of the hunter’s texts, but was refused. 

Flabbergasted, Mr Thomas lodged a freedom of information (FOI) request with NSW Trade and Investment. 

“It beggars belief that these people can shoot my stock, on my farm, admit to it on phone text and still walk away with no charges pressed,” Mr Thomas' email read.

“Only yesterday (the hunter) was bragging locally that he got away with it and would do it again if given the chance.

"I cross my fingers and pray that there will be some justice somewhere.”

His prayer went unanswered. 

The FOI response stated: “The majority of information you have requested access to has been withheld as it contains personal information.”

“If you would like a review of my decision I suggest you apply for an internal review.”

With access denied to the pivotal incriminating evidence - the text screen shots - Mr Thomas has not pursued the internal review. 

And the illegal hunter continues to shoot freely in the Eden area.

Authority inaction is forcing some locals to take the law into their own hands, putting themselves literally in the line of fire. 

“Me and my wife go out and chase people all the time, mostly around Nullica Short Cut Road and our estate,” Mr Hetherington said.

“I once talked to the DPI about it, and they said they were going to put up cameras around the forests. 

"But nothing eventuated.”

In a state where prime hunting animals run in huge numbers, and recreational licenses are cheap and easy to obtain, the question remains why people hunt illegally in the first place. 

Excuses include confusion about boundaries, poaching for the interstate venison trade, rebellion against perceived over-regulation, rising meat prices, impatience over feral animal plagues, and simply showing off to mates. 

Whatever the motive, Clyde Thomas just wants to see proper management at last. 

“This is a case of government departments passing the buck," Mr Thomas said.

"Is there no accountability in government bureaucracy? 

"Something stinks.  

“I just don’t understand why authorities allow this to continue.

"Illegal hunting is a menace to society, and doesn’t secure the finance that legal licensing and hunting does. 

"I’ve given authorities everything I can for a conviction, but they just wipe me. Why?”

Mr Thomas’ question remains unanswered for now. 

And he’s left, like countless others in the back blocks of Eden, to lie awake at night, listening to the nighttime shots.

Hoping, when morning breaks, all will be well.

Locals await news on exclusion zones

Concerned locals have been signing a petition at the Kiah store, requesting no-hunt exclusion zones around private properties.  

Adoption of these zones would be a positive step for local safety, and the Eden Magnet sought verification with the Department of Primary Industries.

“This matter is currently being reviewed and no decision has been made,” a spokesperson for the DPI responded. 

“The Game Licensing Unit works with Forestry Corporation of NSW to continually review areas available for hunting in NSW State forests.

"This process is undertaken in accordance with the Risk Analysis of Permitted Hunting in NSW State forests.”

“We manage state forest, so we have the ultimate say on where hunting can and cannot be permitted,” confirmed the protection supervisor with the Forestry Corporation of NSW, Julian Armstrong. 

“So we’re working closely with the DPI to come up with appropriate exclusion zones around some identified hot spots where hunters are pushing the envelope.”

While a decision remains pending, the DPI encourages people to report all suspected illegal hunting to the DPI Game Licensing Unit on 1800 7488 48 or contact police.

Gun ownership on the rise: report

According to a report in the Sydney Morning Herald, based on data from NSW Police and The Greens, gun ownership in the Eden postcode is on the rise.

Total firearms registered: 681

Average firearms per person in the 2551 postcode: 0.2 per cent 

Firearm owner growth 2010-2015 = 13.3 per cent 

There are approximately 100 hunting licence holders in the Eden/Bega area.