Met Police's Wildlife Crime Fighter Wins Award at House of Lords
Sunday, 04 November, 2007
The man leading the fight against wildlife crime in London has been honoured with a special award at the House of Lords.
Andy Fisher, Head of the Wildlife Crime Unit, Metropolitan Police Service, received a special Wildlife Protection Award from the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) for recognition of his work tackling the escalating trade in illegal wildlife in the capital.
Andy has been in charge of wildlife crime in the Met since January 1993 and heads a dedicated team of four who combat trade in endangered species such as tigers, elephants, rhinos and bears. Andy and his team have been instrumental in seizures of a staggering 30,000 items of illegal wildlife products over the past ten years. This has made a significant impact on the number of successful prosecutions of criminals dealing in endangered species in London.
The work of the Wildlife Crime Unit has achieved an international reputation for excellence and has attracted attention from all over the world. The Unit has been visited by government representatives from the People's Republic of China, India, USA, South Africa, Kenya, Australia, Indonesia, Malawi and Tibet.
Robbie Marsland, UK Director of IFAW, said: "Andy has demonstrated an exceptional dedication to his role in fighting wildlife crime in London. Tens of thousands of endangered species items have been seized by his team over the past decade - without their commitment more rare animals would be at risk from unscrupulous wildlife criminals."
"These awards are a celebration of the remarkable people who work tirelessly, often without recognition, to improve the lives of animals in the UK and abroad. I am proud to help honour their achievements today."
This is the eighth year the IFAW Animal Action Awards have been run by IFAW. It is supported by the People newspaper and Nat Geo Wild TV. Awards Patron Baroness Gale is being hosting the prestigious ceremony and wildlife TV presenter Shauna Lowry will be announcing the nine winners.
