Stock thieves target pregnant cows
Pini Bothoko | Tuesday July 25, 2023 06:00
In the ongoing Kgomokhumo Operation, the police informed farmers they have established a new wave of stock theft in which thieves target pregnant cows as they appear to be meaty.
In an interview with The Monitor, the Botswana Police Service's (BPS) spokesperson, Assistant Commissioner Dipheko Motube said they have observed that stock thieves hang around grazing areas, especially by the pans where animals go to drink water, to rustle pregnant cows and unbranded calves. Motube said they continue to arrest stock theft suspects and confiscate stolen beasts which mostly are pregnant cows, an indication that indeed stock theft has become a paying job for most people, especially butcheries.
He stated that since the beginning of the operation, they have arrested 106 people of which 17 have been slapped with prison terms from five years upwards with 119 livestock involved. “We recently dismantled one of the notorious stock theft syndicates operating in Kgatleng and Kweneng districts and arrested one notorious Kgosi Mothankanyane, 46, of Lekgwapheng ward in Molepolole who operates Maruping Slaughter Slab and Butchery and Borakalolo Four Way Butchery in Molepolole. He has been the mastermind of stock theft in the two districts. He was arrested in possession of six suspected stolen cattle at his home in Ramakgatlanyane Lands near Gakgatla,” Motube said.
He stated that then, four suspected members of his syndicate were also arrested in Artesia after they were also found in possession of eight cattle suspected to have been stolen. He stated that thieves are using Kgope Dam in the Kweneng District as one of the target spots with other hotspots being cattle posts in the outskirts of Lorolwane, Gasita, Jwaneng, Khakea, Maokane, and Mahetlwe where thieves hang around to target pregnant cows. “Some of the cattle go to the watering holes unattended, making it easier for thieves to steal them. I am pleading with farmers to look after their livestock and take accountability in branding and earmarking their cattle as not doing so worsens the problem.
The said thieves have kraals and feedlot in the bush where they slaughter the stolen cattle before selling them to butcheries as the majority of them appear to be relying on stolen stock for supplies,” he said.
However, Motube assured farmers that the police are doing everything to help farmers curb stock theft hence he was pleading with them to meet law enforcement halfway by looking after their livestock, branding, and earmarking them on time.
He said one of their objectives is to identify stock theft cartels and their hard work is showing looking at the numbers of people they have since arrested as well as having identified their hotspots. “We have been arresting individuals but we aim to target cartels to eliminate stock theft as it remains the greatest threat to the long-term sustainability of livestock production and farming,” he said.