Three arrested over deer poaching as experts warn of ‘epidemic’

Three men have been arrested on suspicion of deer poaching after concerns that the numbers of animals illegally shot was reaching crisis levels.

The men were detained in planned searches in Carlow town and about 20km away in the village of Rathvilly near the Wicklow border.

The men, aged in their 20s, were arrested as part of an ongoing investigation involving gardaí and the National Parks and Wildlife Service.