A Gozitan hunter has been fined €1,200 and had his hunting licence confiscated for two years after he was caught killing a protected bird on video.

Brandon Said, 28 and from Nadur, was arraigned after footage taken by BirdLife Malta showed him shooting and injuring a protected Eurasian Collared-dove and then finishing it off using his mouth.

The incident happened during the 2022 spring hunting season.

The video was presented by prosecutors during the compilation of evidence against the accused.

BirdLife Malta officials presented various screenshots of the incident, including an explanation of the main differences in appearance between a Collared-dove and a Turtle-dove which was huntable at the time of the incident. The organisation’s Spring Watch volunteers, who captured the incident on film, recounted the events on the day, which were reported to Gozo Police.

A court presided by Magistrate Leonard Caruana concluded that the video footage was unequivocal and found Said guilty.

It condemned him to pay the €1,200 fine, confiscated his gun and barred him from hunting for two years.

Said was defended by lawyer Deborah Camilleri, who is the spouse of Gozo Minister Clint Camilleri.

Camilleri’s ministerial portfolio also includes responsibility for hunting and trapping.

Despite Gozo being a popular area for hunters, the case was the only hunting-related prosecution linked to the 2022 spring hunting season brought to the courts by the Gozitan police, Birdlife Malta noted in a statement.

A WBRU analysis of the spring hunting season found that Gozo police detected 10 offences related to trapping during the hunting season, but did not arraign anyone in relation to those offences.