Millionaire egg collector jailed after raid on his stately home

Michael Barclay, a millionaire bird enthusiast was sentenced to four months imprisonment after he was found guilty of buying stuffed endangered birds of prey to decorate his stately home. Andrew Bird prosecuted the two week trial that resulted from a joint operation on behalf of RSPB, HMRC and the Norfolk Police.

Mr Barclay was found guilty of offences under the Control of Endangered Species Enforcement Regulations 1997. He had previously pleaded guilty to offences of smuggling wild birds eggs from Russia and Norway.

This is the latest in a line of high profile wildlife crime cases in which members of chambers have appeared. The two leading cases in the field are R v Sissen and R v Humphrey; Simon Draycott QC and Vivian Walters appeared for the Crown in R v Sissen and Andrew Bird conducted the condemnation proceedings in R v Humphrey.