WARNING: This is Version 1 of my old archive, so Photos will NOT work and many links will NOT work. But you can find articles by searching on the Titles. There is a lot of information in this archive. Use the SEARCH BAR at the top right. Prior to December 2012; I was a pro-Christian type of Conservative. I was unaware of the mass of Jewish lies in history, especially the lies regarding WW2 and Hitler. So in here you will find pro-Jewish and pro-Israel material. I was definitely WRONG about the Boeremag and Janusz Walus. They were for real.
Original Post Date: 2009-01-22 Time: 10:00:11 Posted By: Jan
By Sharika Regchand
Members of the Pietermaritzburg stock theft unit had their hands full over the festive season, tracking down syndicates that had stolen hundreds of animals.
In December, 98 head of cattle, 175 sheep and 128 goats were reported stolen in the Midlands. Just fewer than 130 of the animals were recovered and 10 stock theft suspects were arrested.
Stock theft unit head Superintendent Freddie van Tonder said theft increased in November and December, which was usual for those months when there was increased demand for livestock.
“Buyers are looking to purchase these animals for several reasons. These include slaughtering them for funerals and traditional ceremonies,” he said.
Van Tonder said most of the animals stolen from the Midlands were taken to Durban.
Stock theft syndicates found it lucrative to supply stolen animals to meet the increased demand for red meat over the festive season, and buyers preferred to buy these animals as it was cheaper than buying meat at butcheries.
He said most stolen livestock was from communal grazing fields in rural areas.
“Subsistence farmers leave their stock unattended,” he said.
One of the problems experienced in tracking down the owners of the stolen stock, he said, was that most of their animals were not branded.
“If they are not branded, it is difficult to track down who the livestock belongs to.”
Van Tonder urged livestock owners to brand their animals, count them daily and immediately report thefts,
“There is a huge market out there for stolen animals, mostly in the informal meat trade sector, and as long as the demand for cheap meat exists, stock theft attempts will continue. Farmers must do whatever they can to make it as difficult as possible for stock thieves to get hold of livestock,” he said.
Recovered livestock whose owners could not be traced was sold at auction.
Koos Marais, of agricultural union Kwanalu’s security desk, said stock theft was always rife, even outside the festive season, and was becoming a major problem.
Commercial and emerging farmers were affected, he said, adding that their livelihoods were at stake.
Marais said many farmers did not report stock theft.
“They feel that nothing will be done if they report the matter, and they don’t have time to report the thefts if just one or two cattle are stolen. If they don’t report all the thefts, we don’t have a true reflection of how much stock is being stolen,” he said.
Marais called for specialised prosecutors to deal with stock theft cases because it appeared to farmers that suspects were granted bail easily.