The animal, worth 30,000 euros, was found inert on November 6. A complaint was filed and the French Biodiversity Office (OFB) was tasked with the investigations.
Altesse de la Serre was shot dead on November 6 in Isenay, in Nièvre, by a hunter. The competition mare, aged 14 and whose value is estimated between 20,000 and 50,000 euros, was then on private property. Contacted by Le Figarothe Nevers public prosecutor's office indicated that a complaint had been filed by the owner of the meadow and the breeder, confirming information from France 3.
Other complaints could arise, according to the public prosecutor of Nevers Anne Lehaitre, including that of the owner of Altesse de la Serre. The investigation was entrusted jointly to soldiers from the gendarmerie of the Compagnie de Château-Chinon, as well as environmental inspectors from the French Office for Biodiversity (OFB).
The suspect was stationed approximately 90 meters from the mare
According to the first elements of the investigation, the suspect alleged that he was on a hunting trip. According to him, he would have aimed at a wild boar when he was crossing the meadow on which there were eight horses. According to the information provided to Figaro According to the prosecutor, the accused was stationed between 80 and 90 meters from the mare, without any obstacle to shooting. The mare has been resting in this meadow for two years now following foaling.
It was the hunter in question who warned the breeder, who went to the mare to observe her death. His weapon and ammunition were seized. An autopsy was ordered.
If the intentional element is characterized, “several offenses are possible”the prosecutor told us, adding that an additional penalty of withdrawal of the hunting license is also incurred by the suspect.
France
