Victoria Police is investigating whether hunters may be responsible for shooting a 27-year-old horse found dead in a paddock at Lovely Banks, on Geelong’s northern outskirts, last month. Officers are examining whether a stray round fired during hunting activity in the area struck the animal, though police say no conclusions have yet been reached.
The case has unsettled a semi-rural pocket of Geelong where horse paddocks sit close to bushland and reserve land sometimes used by recreational shooters, and it has reignited long-running community concern about firearms discharge near residential and agricultural properties.
What police have said #
Victoria Police said in a statement that officers were called to a property in Lovely Banks last month after the horse was found with a gunshot wound in a paddock. Police said the animal’s owner made the discovery and reported it to authorities.
A police spokesperson said investigators were working to establish how the horse came to be shot, including whether the shot was fired intentionally or whether it may have been the result of a stray round from hunting activity in the surrounding area. Police said inquiries were continuing and that ballistic and veterinary examinations had been sought to help determine the type of firearm or ammunition involved.
Victoria Police has not named any suspect and no charges have been laid. Police said anyone with information, including anyone who was hunting or shooting in the Lovely Banks area around the time the horse was found, is urged to come forward.
Where the investigation stands #
VCN understands the investigation has focused in part on whether the round that struck the horse originated from licensed hunting activity on nearby public or private land, rather than a deliberate act targeting the animal. Sources close to the investigation have told VCN that detectives are treating both possibilities as live lines of inquiry.
No person has been identified by police as a suspect, and it is understood forensic work on the recovered projectile is ongoing. Until that work is complete, police say it would be premature to characterise the shooting as either accidental or deliberate.
A community on edge #
Lovely Banks sits in a transition zone between Geelong’s growing residential fringe and surrounding farmland, with many properties running horses, cattle or sheep on acreage blocks. It is the kind of landscape where rural tradition and encroaching suburbia increasingly overlap, and where the sound of gunfire from legitimate hunting or pest control can carry for kilometres.
For residents who keep horses as working animals, companions or retirees from racing and equestrian careers, the case has struck a nerve. Local horse owners have told VCN they want clarity from police on whether the area is considered safe for animals kept in paddocks adjoining bushland, and whether additional patrols or firearms compliance checks are planned.
VCN understands Victoria Police has liaised with the Game Management Authority as part of the inquiry, given the regulator’s role overseeing licensed hunting activity across Victoria, including seasonal duck and deer hunting that can occur on private and public land with landholder permission.
The law around discharging firearms near property #
Under Victorian firearms law, it is an offence to discharge a firearm in a manner that endangers people, livestock or property, regardless of whether the shooter holds a valid licence. Hunters are required to positively identify their target and what lies beyond it before firing, a rule designed specifically to prevent exactly the kind of outcome under investigation in this case.
Separately, the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986 (Vic) makes it an offence to cause unreasonable pain or injury to an animal, and that legislation sits alongside firearms offences as a possible avenue for charges if police are able to establish who fired the shot and in what circumstances.
Victoria Police has not indicated what charges, if any, might ultimately be considered. Any decision on charges would depend on the outcome of forensic examinations and witness inquiries still underway.
What happens next #
Police said the investigation remains active and that detectives continue to canvass the Lovely Banks area for witnesses, including anyone who recalls hearing gunshots in the weeks before the horse was found. Victoria Police has also asked residents with security cameras, dashcams or rural property monitoring systems in the vicinity to check footage from the relevant period and report anything of note.
Anyone with information has been urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000, or to make a report anonymously online. Police have not released a specific date range for when the shooting is believed to have occurred, beyond confirming the horse was found last month.
VCN will continue to follow this investigation and will update this report as Victoria Police releases further information.
Firearms safety and rural reporting #
Cases like this one are a reminder of the shared responsibility between licensed shooters, landholders and authorities to ensure recreational and pest-control hunting does not put neighbouring properties, livestock or people at risk. The Game Management Authority maintains public guidance on safe hunting zones, seasons and reporting obligations for Victorian hunters, and compliance officers can investigate suspected breaches of hunting regulations independently of any police criminal investigation.
Residents in semi-rural parts of Geelong and the broader Greater Geelong region who have concerns about firearms discharge near their property can report incidents to Victoria Police or to the Game Management Authority’s compliance line. VCN understands such reports help build a clearer picture of hunting activity patterns that may be relevant to investigations of this kind.
The matter is currently before investigators and no person has been charged. Victoria Police has emphasised that the inquiry remains open and that findings to date should not be taken as conclusive as to how the horse died.
If you have information about this incident, contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000. Anyone affected by animal cruelty concerns can also contact the RSPCA Victoria cruelty hotline. Readers experiencing distress can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636, both available 24/7.
