https://wildbeimwild.com/en/swiss-hobby-hunter-again-accused-of-crime/
11/17/2025
The recently concluded investigations by the St. Gallen cantonal police against four suspected poachers once again demonstrate how fragile the self-image of the “responsible hunting community” actually is.
What began as a regional hunting offense has now turned into a comprehensive criminal case involving illegal shootings, prohibited technology, and massive violations of the Animal Welfare Act.
This is yet another case in a long line of incidents demonstrating that recreational hunting in Switzerland is not the natural and traditional heritage it is often portrayed as. Instead, it is a system that repeatedly attracts people who view animals as fair game and prefer nighttime shooting adventures to adhering to legal regulations.
Illegal shootdowns, prohibited technology, and utter ruthlessness
The four Swiss men accused of systematically killing wild animals outside of regular hunting seasons in the Toggenburg region between 2020 and early 2021. The animals targeted were red deer, roe deer, and foxes – precisely those that recreational hunters officially claim to “conserve.”
The men’s methods read like something out of a handbook for organized poaching:
Use of prohibited night vision aiming devices
Hunting with unauthorized weapon additives
Shooting in someone else’s hunting grounds
At least 28 illegally killed wild animals
A participant without a valid hunting license
Much of this is not only illegal, but directly contradicts the supposed principles of hunting ethics. However, such violations are no longer isolated incidents; they are an expression of a hunting practice that often resembles a criminal hobby with weapons more than the responsible treatment of wild animals.
Animal cruelty included – the system looks the other way.
The allegations of animal cruelty are particularly serious. The use of night vision technology and shooting in darkness massively increases the risk of severely injured, fleeing animals. Such hunting methods mean suffering, agony, and often hours-long death struggles—a price that is apparently secondary for some hobby hunters, as long as the adrenaline rush is right.
It is hardly surprising, then, that the accused men later divided the meat of the slain red deer among themselves. Wild animals that died under questionable circumstances became private property. A self-regulating system invites abuse and repeatedly delivers it.
A structural problem – not just “isolated cases”
The hunting lobby regularly tries to portray such events as rare exceptions. But the reality is different:
Hobby hunters are repeatedly convicted for illegal killings.
Prohibited weapons, traps, and technical aids keep surfacing.
Time and again, massive gaps in knowledge regarding the handling of animals and nature become apparent.
People keep dying because of amateur hunters.
The recent case in Toggenburg is merely the tip of the iceberg. It shows that recreational hunting is no guarantee of nature conservation, but rather an area where criminal intent and traditional freedom create a volatile mix.
The St. Gallen public prosecutor’s office is now examining criminal proceedings against the four men. This is necessary, but not enough. The case clearly demonstrates how inadequate self-regulation is within this militant hunting scene. Where weapons use, animal suffering, and personal interests intersect, what is needed is not less, but more state oversight, stricter controls, and more consistent penalties.
According to the IG Wild (German Association for Wildlife), annual medical-psychological assessments for hobby hunters , following the Dutch model, as well as an upper age limit. The largest age group among hobby hunters is 65+, those with impairments related to age, thinking, vision, concentration, and reaction, as well as educational and training deficits. From the age of 45, the number of accidents involving humans and animals increases dramatically. The alarming reports of hunting accidents and fatal crimes involving hunting weapons show: It is high time to abolish hobby hunting! Deadly firearms do not belong in the hands of senile hobby hunters who can use them completely uncontrollably! Hobby hunters represent everything that is wrong in the world.
Recreational hunters live speciesism. Speciesism is comparable to racism and sexism, and that’s no culture or tradition.
In particular, with recreational hunting, it’s essential to take a close look. Nowhere is there as much manipulation with untruths and fake news. Violence and lies are two sides of the same coin.