Bird man's fall from grace

Once Crowe Farm had been a thriving piggery but the buildings had become derelict.

Badly neglected, it was an unwanted area of land. But when Bruce Berry found out about the six acres, near Ringwood, he knew it was perfect for his plans.

He was a local countryman who had always had an interest in birds of prey.

Berry wanted to build a refuge where wounded birds could be cared for and encouraged to breed and where chicks could be restored to their native habitat.

The piggery was demolished and he set about building what was to become the New Forest Owl Sanctuary.

It was an ambitious and costly project, and requests for help from official sources were met with a disappointing response, but support from local businessmen, sponsors and private donors enabled him to go ahead.

The sanctuary opened two years later with 100 spacious aviaries, a hospital unit, an incubator room and a lecture hall for flying displays. In the first year it drew 40,000 visitors.

Today it stands closed, following a police raid codenamed Operation Feaversham, investigating controversial claims over the handling of animals.

Berry's fall from grace culminated at Southampton Crown Court yesterday when he was convicted of five offences - stealing a Sakar falcon that had flown away from the wife of its owner as she was learning to handle it, displaying three owl chicks and three tortoises without a licence and selling a marsh harrier and a tawny owl without licences.

Berry, who won't be sentenced until next month, said outside court: "I am very disappointed."

After the case PC Geoff Culbertson, Hampshire police's wildlife crime officer, said: "Mr Berry often stated he was 'The New Forest Owl Sanctuary' and therefore held a position of power and control over all that happened at the site.

"His failure to comply with international law has led to his conviction today.''

Berry was cleared of furnishing false documents to obtain a licence and attempting to release barn owls into the wild.

He denied the charges, claiming he had been the victim of a conspiracy and refuting suggestions he had threatened staff with a firearm.

He claimed three baby birds were in public view because of pressure of space and said rescued birds had not been "imprinted" with human contact.

According to records held by the Charity Commission for England and Wales the sanctuary had an annual gross income of between £200,000 and £250,000.

Berry became a regular feature in the local media and as chairman of the International Owl Society, his one-time dream of a sanctuary for owls and birds of prey became a resounding success.

But during the case a string of allegations were levelled against him.

Former staff described how the site was run with a climate of fear, how he lied and covered up the origins and upbringing of some birds.

Former manager Jill Garrard, who ran the complex with husband Terence for 15 months, claimed the ex-director threatened her with an air rifle kept in his office during rows over birds.

She told jurors Berry would personally pocket cash donations made by well-wishers to the charity.

After yesterday's case Mrs Garrard said: "Our main thing has been the welfare of the birds.

"New Forest Owl Sanctuary was a charity and they were not doing what they said that they would and today has proved it."

Claims were also levelled against Berry that birds found by members of the public and brought into the sanctuary were deliberately overly-handled and put on show to visitors.

When police raided the site accompanied by a vet, they discovered three tawny owl chicks, which had been handed to the sanctuary just weeks earlier, placed in a public aviary - it meant the birds stood little chance of being released successfully back into the wild.

Now the sanctuary remains closed.

So how did it all go so wrong? By 1991 Berry found himself in trouble for the first time with district planners who retrospectively refused permission for two large aviaries that he had built.

He was allowed to stay open - provided the sanctuary did not expand.

But later that year he was criticised by councillors because he wanted to put a caravan on site to provide 24-hour security cover.

They described Berry as being "a law unto himself" over planning applications and his bird of prey haven was described as

"growing into a zoo".

And it certainly was - Berry had 400 birds. The owl sanctuary eventually earned the title of being the largest in Europe, as by that time he had 50 different varieties of owl after starting off just five different species.

Early in 2001, the sanctuary faced closure from loss of revenue caused by the foot and mouth disease crisis, which hit the New Forest hard.

But a charity auction raised the funds it desperately needed to keep running.

Later that year the sanctuary was in trouble again because it had breached planning laws by extending its facilities without permission.

He had had fallen foul of the planners before when about an acre of farmland was added to the sanctuary to house three new aviaries for injured birds and three ponds for keeping and breeding otters.

Despite Berry's regular run-ins with the district council, the sanctuary was popular and successful.

"All the guests that we advised to visit there over the years really enjoyed it," said Mary Lewis who runs a guest house in Lymington.

"They thoroughly enjoyed the experience of being to see such magnificent birds in flight."

But days after the screening of a controversial television documentary, Inside Out, which made allegations over its management, Berry's home and the sanctuary were raided by the police. He was arrested and then resigned from the sanctuary's running,

Falconer Giles Talbot took the sanctuary out of Berry's hands and renamed it Liberty's Raptor and Reptile Centre, but he has been unable to open the centre to the public because of problems with planning permission.

Giles believes that Berry simply "lost interest" in the centre.

"When I took over the centre behind the scenes it was run down," he said.

"But surprisingly the birds were okay.

"The centre simply had too many birds. I think that Berry wanted to be known for having the biggest collection of birds, even if that compromised conditions.

"Since I have been running the centre we have had about 16 injured birds brought in, which have been nursed back to health and released back into the wild."

Pam Broughton, who became chairman of the trustees in September last year said: "Bruce was a very skilled man who bred some amazing birds.

"But he made a mistake when he decided that the sanctuary should become a charity in 1996.

"He had the best intentions for doing this, because he wanted to attract funding but he had been incredibly badly advised.

"He was under the impression that he could continue to use the money as he wanted, he didn't realise that as it was public money you couldn't treat it in that way.

"Hopefully we can get the centre back on its feet soon, as Bruce built up an amazing collection of birds and they should be on display to the public."