Prolific egg thief (1 Viewer)

[Daniel Martin]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/dec/13/prolific-egg-thief-700-jailed

Is it just me, but if they destroy his collection, will he not go out and do it all again.

Scumbag.

 

[Andy Hurley]

Clearly a case of punishment not severe enough, it hasn't stopped him in the past. Why didn't he get 5 years this time? He should have got 1 year per egg in his collection.

Andy

 

[Gaz Shilton]

Could this person and the others who 'get away' with this behaviour not be fitted with one of those 'tags'?
If he strays a certain distance from his house it goes off.
He, and the other sick individuals who steal eggs need to be stopped.
Or just give them much heavier jail terms.
Although, I have to admit, these individuals must have amazing fieldcraft and testicles the size of spacehoppers to do what they do.

 

[Sandra (Taylor)]

If he has the knowledge of birding and fieldcraft as stated, what a great pity this couldn't be channelled into something constructive instead of causing such destruction and loss to the birds concerned.

:C

 

[howiewu]

He should have his balls removed. Eye for an eye if you ask me.

(not going to be a popular opinion, I realize)

 

[CObirdboy]

He should have his balls removed. Eye for an eye if you ask me.

(not going to be a popular opinion, I realize)

I agree!

 

[TerryL]

He who casts the first stone

 

[J.W.Ray]

Craziness. Does anyone know what the colored spots on the eggs are, looks like he drew on them with markers?

 

[Sandra (Taylor)]

Craziness. Does anyone know what the colored spots on the eggs are, looks like he drew on them with markers?

Oh - I thought they had been marked by the authorities to 'spoil' them. So you think he did that?

 

[John Cantelo]

According to news reports "In addition to the prison term, the judge also ordered the forfeiture and destruction of the eggs and of Gonshaw's collection and storage equipment." I'm not sure, though, that will discourage his activities - arguably the reverse might be the case. I gather that the police have also applied for an ASBO (anti-social behaviour order) which may have the effect of restricting his future movements. Having read through the details of previous cases this man seems to suffer from some sort of compulsive disorder. The list of species targeted is extraordinary - golden eagles, osprey, red kite, merlin & dotterel. However, I suspect that neither prison nor mutilation (which I hope was not a realistic suggestion) is likely to stop his behaviour. What this sad individual - described as an obsessive loner - needs is treatment,

 

[tittletattler]

http://www.london24.com/news/obsessed_egg_thief_from_east_london_is_four_time_jail_bird_1_1153057

Picture of him above.

 

[dafi]

i quite agree, little will change with his behaviour. What is needed is a restriction of liberty sort of order that will keep him stuck localy by reporting to the local police station twice a day during the breeding season for the next three years....or is this to over the top, would such an option even exist for a judge?

 

[Reuven_M]

Surely it would be better for the eggs to be given to a museum than destroyed?

 

[kawwauser]

i agree with sandra on this one, the man is 49 and has an obsession, he has not learned from his past prosecutions,egg collectors at this age are not going to stop collecting eggs ,sentances get shorter as you get older,personally i think a better way to deal with him is if he was put on a course with the rspb watching maybe a common species and recording all the details from the nestbuilding through the birth of the chicks then the survival rates to show him the importance of those eggs ,he has a good knowledge of birdlife maybe if he was given a chance to chanel it differently he would stop the collecting for good

 

[RE Birder]

Clearly a case of punishment not severe enough, it hasn't stopped him in the past. Why didn't he get 5 years this time? He should have got 1 year per egg in his collection.

Andy

Possession of eggs is a 'summary' offence therefore only attracts a 6 months max sentence. Unfortunate as that may be.

 

[Farnboro John]

i agree with sandra on this one, the man is 49 and has an obsession, he has not learned from his past prosecutions,egg collectors at this age are not going to stop collecting eggs ,sentances get shorter as you get older,personally i think a better way to deal with him is if he was put on a course with the rspb watching maybe a common species and recording all the details from the nestbuilding through the birth of the chicks then the survival rates to show him the importance of those eggs ,he has a good knowledge of birdlife maybe if he was given a chance to chanel it differently he would stop the collecting for good

You are assuming a level of rationality that is probably not there, and also denying the existence of evil.

Do you read The Guardian?

John

 

[JDatchens]

...personally i think a better way to deal with him is if he was put on a course with the rspb watching maybe a common species and recording all the details from the nestbuilding through the birth of the chicks then the survival rates to show him the importance of those eggs ,he has a good knowledge of birdlife maybe if he was given a chance to channel it differently he would stop the collecting for good

You can sit a heavy smoker down and make him watch videos of what his lungs look like:smoke:; you can show a binge drinker what damage can be caused to his liver B , but the odds are very few will in fact change their ways as a result.

This fellow cares not a jot for the life or survival of the bird, just his collection. As far as he's concerned, that's it: the be-all and end-all.:C

"Some of the golden eagle eggs were stolen just before the birds hatched, meaning Gonshaw removed almost full-term chicks. He took them about one week from hatching and he has basically removed a live chick from the eggshell for his own personal satisfaction."​

As for the destruction of the eggs, (original post) most museums/research institutes will already have their own legally-held collections anyway via some late Victorian "gentlemen", and I believe the idea of confiscation is to dishearten the "collector" from starting all over again. In any case, proceeds of criminal activities are generally confiscated under English Law (drugs money, for example.)

 

[TerryL]

Lots of assumptions and probables banded about on the thread yet one thing is a certainty and that is that the present system is not working.
Voluntary work or CS working with the BTO breeding bird surveys or something similar during the breeding season is a solution that could work , and whether you read the guardian ,the daily mail or whatever i'm sure a solution has got to be a bigger priority than venting anger.

 

[Robin Edwards]

Lots of assumptions and probables banded about on the thread yet one thing is a certainty and that is that the present system is not working.
Voluntary work or CS working with the BTO breeding bird surveys or something similar during the breeding season is a solution that could work , and whether you read the guardian ,the daily mail or whatever i'm sure a solution has got to be a bigger priority than venting anger.

Terry, whilst I agree, there will be a minority of obsessives out there that simply are beyond spending time and resources to change them. In my eyes this guy is no different from a peadophile reoffender who is beyond hope. Our egg collector has total disrespect for the law and clearly doesn't care that people find his behaviour abhorrant giving people outside the court the finger.

I'm not venting my anger when I say therefore that a certain amount of selective surgery would prevent reoffending. I'm not in favour of captial punishment but there are a select few who don't fit into society and never will so why waste time on them? The alternative solution is we turn a blind eye, say three-cheers for his Human Rights and watch some more eggs get stolen.

 

[dantheman]

Give him a stamp collection or a set of beer mats ...