A man from Brighton has admitted to poaching pheasants from the countryside in the dead of night.

Shortly before midnight on December 25, a man was spotted sneaking through the woods carrying a large sack. But it wasn’t Father Christmas running late to deliver a final present, and he was accompanied by a second man with a firearm.

Armed response officers went to Titsey Hill, near Oxted, Surrey, guided from the skies by the National Police Air Service helicopter and tracked and detained the men in an armed stop.

The Argus: One of the men had an air rifleOne of the men had an air rifle (Image: Surrey Police)

Officers seized an air rifle and a bag of dead pheasants, and Anas Abdulla Azizi, from Brighton, as well as Sirwan Muhammad Salih were arrested for night poaching.

Azizi, 21, of Ryelands Drive, and Salih, 40, of Strutt Street, Derby, both pleaded guilty at Guildford Crown Court on Tuesday, May 21, and were ordered to pay compensation.

The Argus: Bodycam footage of the bag full of pheasantsBodycam footage of the bag full of pheasants (Image: Surrey Police)

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A spokesman for Surrey Police said: "Poachers often operate at night, using lights and firearms to hunt animals such as pheasants, rabbits, and deer in farmland or woodland.

"This offence can have a serious financial impact on gamekeepers, farmers, and landowners, who often put themselves at risk trying to confront armed offenders by themselves.

"If you believe a poaching offence is taking place, call 999."