Cambridgeshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner tells the packed hall he will hold the police to account (Image: Fenland Citizen / SWNS)
Police are on the hunt for a 30-strong gang of balaclava-wearing hare coursers who wreaked havoc across Fenland, Cambridgeshire, causing fear among villagers and damaging emergency vehicles. The group, driving 4x4s, carved a path of destruction through farmland, terrorising residents, damaging two fire engines, and committing theft at a petrol station during their spree.
The affected villages include Manea, Wimblington, Welney, Chatteris, Fordham, Ely, Prickwillow, and Littleport, all suffering from the weekend’s chaos. Social media footage captured the offenders brazenly speeding off-road through fields, accompanied by shouts.
The “appalling” and “shocking” criminal activities reached a peak on Saturday (January 25), when the hare coursers disrupted a firefighting training exercise, resulting in damage to two fire engines. Additionally, Sisco Service Station in Wimblington fell victim to the gang, with over £200 worth of fuel, food, and drink stolen.
Described as ‘unprecedented’ by Cambridgeshire Police, the scale of the incident has prompted a public meeting in Manea. Held on Monday (January 29) and called by Tory MP Steve Barclay and local councillor Charlie Marks, the meeting saw an attendance of 300 people.
They were informed about the convoy of 30 cars filled with masked men tearing through crops. Farmer Robert Sears from Manea recounted his experience, having never witnessed such lawlessness; he faced 25 4x4s on his farm track, which led to his car being rammed and further damage after he attempted to confront them.
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Balaclava-clad hare coursers terrorised villagers after driving their 4x4s through farmland (Image: Fenland Citizen / SWNS)
He exclaimed, “It’s not the damage to our property, it’s the violation suffered.Mr Sears made 999 calls and was told police would attend within three to four hours. He added: “After Mr Sears urgently called 999, expecting police intervention within three to four hours, he lamented, “That was Saturday morning, I am still waiting – that’s not good enough.”
Farmer Matthew Latter resorted to fortifying his family inside their home as a gang of 70 masked men with 30 vehicles seized his farm. The Latters were subjected to over three and a half hours of chaos, during which repeated pleas for help were made to the authorities.
He recounted the ordeal: “We had at least 70 people literally take over our farm from 1.30pm to 4pm. There were 13 4x4s.”
Dissatisfied with the lack of response, he stated, “I called the police three times, I gave the What3Words coordinates of exactly where they were but we didn’t have any response – absolutely zero.”
Describing the distress this caused his family, he revealed, “My seven-year-old daughter was crying and was utterly terrified.”
He questioned the efficiency of the police response, “My question is how bad does it have to be? They had cut through every single gate, moved every single concrete block.”
Conveying the aftermath, he said, “We have been left with four vehicles dumped, two have been burnt out, one is stuck but despite all of this we have yet to have a police officer come out to us.”
Sharing his frustration, Leo Butler from Chatteris reported never encountering anything similar to the havoc wrought on his fields and questioned the absence of law enforcement: “What I would like to know is where were the police – there were no helicopters, no police cars, not one police officer – nothing.”
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An investigation has been launched after the 30-strong group caused criminal damage and dangerous driving across Fenland (Image: Fenland Citizen / SWNS)
He warned, “If the police aren’t going to confront these people somebody’s got to.”
Cllr Marks, who was on the scene of the chaos in Manea, expressed his relief that there were no fatalities or severe injuries following the criminal acts. “We could have been mourning a member of our village today,” he remarked.
He recounted a chilling detail where one individual wielded a pick axe handle, ominously stating: “You can only imagine what that meant if anyone happened to get in their way.”
Chief Constable Nick Dean admitted there was “no excuse” for the police’s failure to respond and announced a regional-level enquiry to determine the failures. Reflecting on his decision-making regarding resource allocation, he conceded with the words “I perhaps got it wrong in hindsight,” which elicited laughter from those gathered in the packed hall.
Mr Barclay welcomed the chief constable’s recognition of the policing errors and his assurance of a regional investigation.
Superintendent Ben Martin, the local policing commander, acknowledged the distress caused by the incidents, saying: “We understand the damage, concern and fear these incidents have brought to our rural communities and are sorry we were unable to do more to stop the activities of these people at the time.”
He explained the limitations faced by the force: “The information we had in advance of this gathering had very limited detail, so a force-wide dispersal order was put in place.”
He also cited the scale of the incident, its multiple locations, and a particularly demanding weekend across the county as reasons why the police couldn’t address every report from the public.