Dead Swiss wolf illegally poached
The Swiss authorities are investigating a case of wolf poaching in Broye, canton Vaud, at the beginning of the year. A criminal complaint has been filed.
The remains of a 32-kilogram male wolf were found on January 3 in a forest near the village of Oleyres in the municipality of Avenches, the environmental directorate of the canton of Vaud said on Tuesday.
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The carcass was transferred to the National Competence Center for Wildlife Diseases at the University of Bern. Authorities said the autopsy showed the wolf was killed with a gun about a week before its remains were found.
This is the first known case of wolf poaching in the canton, said Denis Rychner, spokesman for the General Directorate for the Environment, at the request of the Keystone-SDA news agency. There have been cases of poaching with lynx, but not so far with wolves.
There are no suspects at the moment, said Rychner. But one hopes to find the perpetrator. The identification of the animal based on its DNA is currently ongoing and, according to the canton, should be completed by the end of January.
The authorities are already assuming that the wolf was shot illegally. They filed a criminal complaint with the public prosecutor. According to the announcement, they will initiate an investigation to clarify the circumstances of the case.
The State Council strongly condemned the act and stressed that all suspected cases of poaching brought to its attention would be prosecuted. Federal hunting law punishes poaching with fines and up to one year in prison.
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