A Wanaka man has been caught poaching on a Central Otago farm for the second time in six years.
The police summary of facts said Hondelink was driving on Thomson Gorge Rd with four dogs in the back of his vehicle about 1.30pm.
Two were fully trained pig dogs, wearing electronic collars, and the other two puppies.
When the dogs became restless and vocal — "a sign the dogs can smell a wild pig in the vicinity" — he stopped and released them.
As the dogs ran into a gully below the road and on to Devonshire Farm, Hondelink took his rifle and followed them using a handheld GPS unit.
The landowner called the police after he came across the defendant’s vehicle while mustering stock, and could see Hondelink and another man walking in the gully about 800m away.
Prosecutor Ella Scown said Southern district police were running an operation to combat a recent increase in unlawful hunting, to "minimise the risk to legitimate hunters and members of the public".
The defendant was convicted of poaching on the same farm in 2016.
Despite admitting the charge, Hondelink claimed in court he was retrieving the dogs after they chased the pig when he let them out for a "toilet stop".
Judge David Robinson said he did not accept that explanation.
"If that was the case, you didn’t need to have the rifle with you."
The number of unlawful hunting incidents was on the rise, and Parliament had recently increased the maximum penalty from a fine to two years’ prison.
He made an order for the dog collars and GPS unit to be destroyed.
