UK Man Surrenders To Police Over Duckling Hit-And-Run Incident

A 61-year-old man in the UK handed himself in to police investigating claims three ducklings were “crushed to death” by an impatient van driver as they crossed a road. 

The Staffordshire Police have been following up on reports that a motorist “could not wait” for a group of seven ducklings to cross a road in the Trentham area last week. Now, in a brief statement, the cops said that the man from Stoke on Trent was “voluntarily interviewed” on Sunday after a witness uploaded images to social media. 

#UPDATE: A 61-year-old man from Stoke-on-Trent was voluntarily interviewed yesterday (22 May) in connection with this incident. Enquiries are ongoing.

— Staffordshire Police (@StaffsPolice) May 23, 2022

Sky News reported that on Friday traffic had stopped to allow a family of ducks to cross the road, however, motorists were left disgusted after a man in a white van allegedly crushed three of seven young birds. The distressing images shared on the internet showed the ducklings lying on the road, which sparked numerous posts calling for a criminal inquiry.

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The pictures were also shared by a number of high profile Twitter users including animal rights campaigner, Dominic Dyer, who branded the driver responsible a “selfish, cruel idiot”. 

Selfish cruel idiot pic.twitter.com/uUlQMVSUBs

— dominic dyer (@domdyer70) May 21, 2022

Following the social media outrage, the police initiated an investigation to establish if any offences were committed under the Wildlife and Countryside Act. The Staffordshire Police also urged the public to not take matters into their own hands. 

As per the media outlet, the incident came to light after a witness Steven Walley shared his version of events on social media. Mr Walley said that he was “absolutely livid” after what he described as a “despicable act”. 

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Further, the internet user also said that he followed the van to a nearby lay-by, and had a “very heated conversation” with the driver. Mr Walley stated that the driver responded by saying, “I don't F******* care”. 

Now, the Staffordshire police have said that the enquiries are still ongoing.