Police are on the trail of a suspected poacher after taking to the roads and skies around Waverley and Surrey in an ongoing clampdown on rural crime.

More than 40 officers were deployed around the borough on Saturday, May 17, in the third operation of its kind.

And the latest bout of “intensive action” did yield some results with three people being charged with drink-drive offences and five vehicles being seized.

One of the seized vehicles was a stolen car with poaching equipment, a catapult and a machete being recovered and investigations ongoing to identify the owners.

More than 75 vehicles were stopped altogether while drones were used to check out six farms for signs of poaching or theft offences.

The nocturnal Operation Phoenix – which involved a specialist stolen vehicle examiner, drone pilots and 4x4 drivers – has become a “staple part of Surrey Police’s fight against rural criminality”.

Chief Inspector Chris Tinney, rural crime lead for Surrey Police, said: “We will continue to carry out both these large-scale operations alongside smaller more niche proactive operations to keep our community safe.

“My plea to our communities is to please continue to report not only crimes, but crucially any suspicious behaviour as that provides a fantastic opportunity to disrupt and prevent offending – especially when you have video or CCTV footage.

He added: “Please submit this online through the Suspicious Activity Portal where we guarantee every piece of footage will be reviewed for intelligence or evidence opportunities.”

The operation was green-lighted following concerns from people in rural communities and farms about burglary and the theft of plant machinery, horse trailers and livestock, anti-social behaviour, drink-driving, weapon offences and poaching.

Several farms and rural locations were visited in person throughout the night by Rural Crime and Safer Neighbourhood Teams alongside market and unmarked patrols.