I cannot be sure what happened in that field. The prosecution evidence is inconsistent

Phillip Wassall, district judge

He was cleared by district judge Phillip Wassall after a submission at the end of the prosecution case by the defence counsel that there was no case to answer.

The incident happened during a meeting of the hunt at Crammer Barton, near Cullompton, in February.

On Tuesday the court heard that hunt saboteurs used horns and sprays to distract the pack from the scent, and tensions were running high.

Mr Thomas, 51, told the court he grabbed the fox by the scruff of the neck after he was it being "bitten and mauled" by some of the pack.

Man bitten

"The fox immediately bit me on the hand, through my thumb," he said.

Mr Thomas then crouched in the hedge and tried to protect the animal with his body.

He said he felt blows on the back of his head, and was bitten on the hand by some of the pack.

Prosecutor Paul Bitmead claimed that Mr Hazeltine had stamped on Mr Thomas, and punched him in the back of the head, and the fox escaped from his grasp.

But Mr Hazeltine, who did not give evidence to the court, said in a police statement that he was trying to make Mr Thomas release the fox.

'No choice'

He said he feared he would have been savaged by the pack if he held onto the animal.

Acquitting Mr Hazeltine, Mr Wassall said: "I cannot be sure as to what happened in that field. The prosecution evidence is inconsistent at every stage."

After the case the joint master of the hunt, Michael Moore, said he felt that Mr Hazeltine did Mr Thomas "a favour".

"He had no choice but to do what he did," said Mr Moore.

Mr Thomas said that he was "very disappointed" at the outcome.