Daniel slowly opened his eyes. He felt the cold, gritty mud against his face. It was dark and the air smelled like damp moss and rain.
It took a few seconds for the searing pain to set in. The 40-year-old had no idea how long he’d been unconscious for. But with his head sliced open and part of his ear missing, he knew he’d been left for dead.
The activist had been checking on some badger dens in a woodland area when he was brutally attacked in Little Lever, Bolton, on April 28 last year.
READ MORE: Police investigating after 'badger baiting' site found in woods
He was alone when he stumbled upon a group of hunters. The camouflage-clad gang had several dogs and were digging out a badger sett. Daniel tried to telephone for help before deciding to confront them.
The men froze for a moment before charging towards him armed with shovels. Though he tried to put up a fight, Daniel was quickly overpowered.
“I came across a group of men with spades and dogs all stood on and in front of the sett entrances,” Daniel, who asked that his full name wasn't used, told the Manchester Evening News.
“They were a mixed group aged between 20 and 50 and were dressed in mostly camouflage clothing. They had two large bull lurcher dogs and two small shaggy terrier type dogs which were whining eagerly.
“I tried to call for help but had no reception, so I confronted them saying words to the effect of ‘I’ve called the police, you’d better all go now’.
“They just froze staring at me, then one of the men charged at me throwing punches and we began fighting. All the details are still hazy in my head as I was knocked unconscious. I came to on the floor face down all disorientated.
“I checked on the sett to see if it had been dug out but they must have fled after attacking me. I made my way out of the woods and a member of the public found me and called emergency services who took me to A&E.”
Daniel, who is a member of the Lancashire Badger Group, a group which aims to provide knowledge, information, help and advice relating to badgers, was left with catastrophic injuries.
He sustained a huge slash on the top of his head, cuts down his face, a ripped ear, a broken nose and bruising all over his body. It’s presumed the cuts were caused by the spades the hunters were using at the time.
“I had 60 stitches in my face and head and had plastic surgery on my ear the morning after,” Daniel continued. “I had lots of follow-up appointments.
“The ambulance came in around ten minutes and the police took 16 hours to come the next day when I was in hospital. They never caught or convicted anybody and dropped the case earlier this year.
“I have lots of scars but the whole attack has made me more driven to carry on and work harder to stop wildlife crimes. Since then, I’ve carried on and committed more to Lancashire Badger Group, getting more involved, and recently got the award for my continued work in protecting badgers from the National Wildlife Crime Unit.”
A spokesman for GMP confirmed that despite an initial investigation, no suspect was ever identified in relation to the attack. In a statement, the force told the MEN: “GMP is currently reviewing how best to deal with wildlife crime as part of its Neighbourhood Policing Review.”
And sadly, despite Daniel’s hard work, crimes against badgers have risen since the start of 2020: sett interference by 40 per cent, badger baiting/fighting by 52 per cent and poisoning by 77 per cent, according to the latest figures released by Wildlife and Countryside Link, a network of 62 organisations involved in wildlife.
In March this year, Paris Carding and Grant Leigh Snr both appeared before the courts for ‘graphic and perverse cruelty at its worst’ . Ex-teaching assistant Carding, 28, her then-boyfriend Grant Leigh Jr, 30, and his dad, Grant Leigh Snr, 52, filmed as their dogs savagely attacked foxes and badgers.
They also encouraged their children to get involved. Leigh Snr previously boasted to members of Facebook group ‘The Real Terrier Men and Lurcher Men’ about taking his son out badger baiting as a way of ‘celebrating’ his prison release, Tameside Magistrates’ Court heard.
Their six dogs were found in squalid conditions at Leigh Snr’s house in Hyde and all had injuries consistent with hunting activities. They have since been taken into RSPCA care.
The court was shown disturbing footage taken from their phone which showed three dogs attacking a fox while a child is heard saying: "I want to bash it again.” In another video, taken by Carding according to the prosecution, she can be heard saying 'they love it, bash! Bash!'.
At a trial Carding was found guilty of five cruelty charges under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992. Grant Leigh Snr was found guilty of two offences under the Animal Welfare Act, and Grant Leigh Jr admitted to seven cruelty offences.
District Judge Bernard Begley sentenced Carding to 22 weeks custody suspended for 12 months with Leigh Snr given 12 weeks suspended for 12 months. Both were ordered to pay £1,000 costs towards the investigation.
For his offences, Leigh Jr was handed a 26 week sentence, which will be added to the prison sentence he is currently serving for different matters. The Protection Of Badgers Act was introduced in 1992 and, if prosecuted, the maximum prison term is six months.
An RSPCA spokesperson said: "Badger persecution and hunting with dogs is, sadly, something which we are seeing more of. We've dealt with numerous cases where groups of men spend their evenings going out across countryside and farmland with their dogs to track down and kill badgers, foxes, deer and anything else that may get in their way. This is gratuitous killing for fun.
"Badger baiting or digging is where a dog is sent into a badger sett to flush out the badger and attack it for the handler to then dig the badger out of the sett and shoot it. This not only inflicts terrible wounds on the dog involved but also causes severe suffering to the badger and is illegal under the Badgers Act, Wildlife & Countryside Act and Animal Welfare Act. Anyone who suspects badger baiting should report the matter to the police or call the RSPCA on 0300 1234 999."
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