University’s animal crime fighter launches new BBC series

Wales's wildest animal expert will be launching a brand new series, Rhys Jones' Wildlife Patrol, on BBC Wales at an event hosted by Cardiff University on 8 April.

In this high-octane, hard-hitting four-part series, Dr Rhys Jones - a Distinguished Visiting Fellow of the Cardiff University School of Biosciences – will tackle wildlife crime, alien invaders and exotic escapees.

Using science and crime fighting expertise, Rhys will battle to help protect the nation's 5000 native species. The series will see him performing autopsies, doing forensic work, entering buildings on arrest warrants and chasing criminals responsible for raptor crimes.

The new series will be a departure from Rhys's previous series, Rhys to the Rescue, given that it will lend greater focus to the work he often undertakes in supporting the police in its investigations into crimes against animals. Speaking of the new series, Rhys said:

"Rhys Jones' Wildlife Patrol is a step up from my last series. It is different in that it tackles some of Wales's priority wildlife crime issues and reports on real cases as they develop, and as we piece together the evidence, sometimes with extraordinary results.

"We also continue to rescue people from animals and animals from people, and examine current conservation concerns. I am very proud of what we have achieved and simply cannot wait to get the Wildlife patrol out across the nation."

In the first episode, viewers will see Rhys come face-to-face with a deadly animal sent through the post, and will also see him solve a suspected case of deer poaching.

To celebrate the launch of this series, Cardiff University's School of Biosciences will be holding a drinks reception and special screening of the first episode, in the University's Sir Martin Evans building at 19:30. Following the screening, guests will be invited to a question-and-answer session with Rhys and other members of the programme.

'Rhys Jones' Wildlife Patrol' airs 19:30 on BBC One Wales, 8 April.