Rural crime officers on patrol in Balsham, around ten miles southeast of Cambridge, spotted a suspicious SUV packed with men and dogs. When they tried to stop the vehicle, it sped off through villages and along narrow rural roads.
The pursuit ended when officers deployed a stinger device, puncturing the tyres of the fleeing car. As the vehicle came to a halt near open farmland, its doors flew open and ten men bolted in different directions, one dragging a dog behind him.
The car was seized and several dogs were recovered, which police said will now be rehomed. No arrests have been made so far, and inquiries remain ongoing.
The dramatic chase comes amid a nationwide crackdown on illegal hare coursing, which has long plagued farmers and rural communities. The blood sport involves releasing sighthounds typically greyhounds or saluki-type breeds to chase and kill hares, often for large bets.
Earlier this year, a landmark case saw two men banned from entering private or agricultural land anywhere in England and Wales without written permission.
Levi Lee, 36, of Reading, and Francie Doherty, 47, of Wellingborough, were among 25 people charged following mass hare coursing events in the Cambridgeshire Fens on 25 January.
Both admitted attending a hare coursing event and were issued with three-year Criminal Behaviour Orders (CBOs). Lee was additionally banned from driving any vehicle with a sighthound outside a five-mile radius of his home unless travelling to a vet. Each was fined £500 at Peterborough Magistrates’ Court.
Detective Inspector Matthew Selves, who led the investigation, said the orders “set a strong precedent for how seriously this type of offending is being taken” and send a “clear message” to those seeking to disrupt rural communities.
Breaching a CBO carries a penalty of up to five years in prison or an unlimited fine.
A further 20 men are due in court over the coming months in connection with the January offences.
Since new powers were introduced in 2022, police can now arrest anyone suspected of preparing for or engaging in hare coursing and seize their dogs and vehicles. Officers can also issue Community Protection Notices (CPNs) to ban suspects from being on private land or handling dogs off-lead.
Police say these strengthened laws are already making a difference, curbing a crime that has long intimidated farmers and put rural livelihoods at risk.
