Lancashire Police left with £20k bill as hare coursing claims at Blackpool's Cuadrilla fracking site collapse

Lancashire Police have been landed with a £20,000 bill after failing to secure a conviction for hare coursing.

Three cousins were acquitted of taking part in the blood sport which was made illegal in 2004.

Their two day trial at Blackpool Magistrates Court collapsed after defence lawyers successfully argued there was no case to answer.

Had the three Boswell cousins been convicted the police would have applied for the 10 month long kennelling bill for their three lurcher dogs to be paid by the defendants.

Magistrates had been told in evidence by one of the investigating officers that the bill had reached £20,000.

After the hearing one of the trio Tommy Boswell (45) of Midgeland Road, Blackpool said: "All we want are our dogs back now they are family pets."

Police will now have to fund the kennel bill after one one of the defence lawyers David Charnley told the magistrates: "This has been a real dog's dinner of a prosecution - if you excuse the phrase."

Five police officers gave evidence about the the arrest of Tommy Boswell and his cousins Shane Boswell (40) of Whalley Lane, Blackpool and Andrew Boswell (38) of Denton Street, Carlisle.

They denied trespassing on land at Westby with intent to hare course and going equipped for hare coursing on November 19 last year.

Chairman of the Bench Mr Slawkobaran dismissed the case stating: "We are disappointed that there was no evidence from the landowner that anyone was trespassing.

"There was no evidence that anyone actually saw anyone hare coursing.

"There was no evidence that the dogs were off their leads.

"The cousins maintained they had merely gone out to walk their dogs in a field near the Cuadrilla fracking site.

"There was no conclusive forensic evidence linking their dogs to killing hares.

"The prosecution had earlier heard the trio had tried to run off when they saw police approach."

Hare coursing is a so called field sport dating back centuries during which hound breeds are set free to chase down and often kill hares at speeds of up to 45 mph.

The UK brown hare population has dwindled to just 250,000.

The court awarded costs to the Boswells.