Campania man pleads not guilty to death of fur seal, burglary and weapons counts

A Campania man accused of killing an Australian fur seal has faced court. Here’s how authorities allege he did it.

Rod Morrison took this photo of an Australian Fur Seal having a rest on the rocks at Aireys Inlet at low tide ** not for photo sales***

A Campania man has entered pleas of not guilty to 29 counts, including stealing, burglary and allegedly shooting and killing of an Australian fur seal.

James Danny Young, 23, appeared in Hobart’s Magistrates Court on Friday relating to incidents spanning 16 months, including the alleged capture of a fur seal – a protected species – from the Richmond River in August last year and its eventual death in June this year at a Campania property.

Mr Young is also charged with three counts of stealing and two counts of burglary from January and May this year, alleged to have taken a box trailer and goods to the value of $2240 in separate events from a TasWater property in Richmond.

Tasmania Police previously executed a search warrant in June at Mr Young’s private residence where they uncovered various illegal firearms and stolen property.

Among the firearms uncovered was over 150 rounds of ammunition.

Magistrate Chris Webster bailed Mr Young to appear in court again on October 23.