LEEDS: Gamekeeper James Kennedy, 69, shot and killed a red deer, removed its internal organs, head and lower legs, before taking it from Glenfinnan Estate in Lochaber in the Highlands.
Police were alerted of suspected poaching activity last February by members of the West Lochaber Deer Management Group and later stopped Kennedy in his van, discovering a deer carcass in the rear.
It had been gralloched, a term describing how parts of the animal had been removed.
Kennedy told officers he had shot the deer lawfully at another location, meaning there was no basis for the police to detain him or seize the deer carcass at that time.
However, two days later, the head of a red deer hind, along with deer stomach and intestines, legs and heart were found on a hilldside at Druim na Brein-choille on the Glenfinnan Estate.
Samples of the deer heart and deer hair were taken to the Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture (SASA) laboratory in Edinburgh for examination.
A search warrant was later obtained and a blood stain was found on a metal tray in the rear of the van.
The SASA scientists established that there was a DNA profile match between the red deer remains found on the estate and the bloodstain in the accused’s vehicle.
The probability of these DNA profiles matching by chance alone is one in 40 million.
Kennedy last month pled guilty by letter to killing the red deer and gralloching it, an offence under Section 22 of the Deer (Scotland) Act 1996, on 2 February last year.
He appeared at Fort William Sheriff Court on Tuesday for sentencing.
Solicitor advocate Urfan Dar, defending, said his client was well known for his community work in Fort William.
