The Guardia Civil carried out a bust on a group of poachers in protected areas around Maro-Cerro Gordo and the Parque Natural de las Sierras de Tejeda, Almijara y Alhama.

The environmental department of the Guardia Civil, Seprona, arrested three hunters, as part of Operación Venatus, accused of hunting wild mountain goats just for their heads.

The investigation began after several decapitated, male, mountain goats were discovered within the vecinity of Los Acantilados de Maro-Cerro Gordo, which is a protected area.

The suspects took advantage of the mating season and rugged terrain to carry out hunts around dusk. Their objectives were specimens aged between 12 and 16, putting the mountain-goat population on a generational level at risk. The animals were not even killed for their meat; just for head ‘trophies.’

The Seprona officers had been keep a watch on the area after dark and intercepted the three men. After asking for their IDs, they were searched and a disassembled rifle with telescopic sights was found in one of their backpacks.

The poachers allegedly used their status as members of several hunting estates (cotos de caza) to obtain legal tags and documentation from areas outside the natural park. They used these to pass off their trophies as legally hunted in Granada (rather than in this protected area.)

Thanks to collaboration with the Andalusian Hunting Reserve, they were able to prove that the three suspects operated clandestinely within the Natura 2000 network, falsifying stalking reports.

(News: Maro, Nerja, Axarquia, Costa del Sol, Malaga, Andalucia)

Keywords: Trophy Poachers Arrested in Maro, Acantillados de Maro, Cerro Gordo, Decapitated Remains, Seprona

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