By: Natasha Archary

Theft of livestock is on the increase in rural areas and police have arrested 8 suspects in two separate incidents who were found in possession of stolen sheep and goats.
In the first incident on Friday, 19 July police received information about suspicious vehicles on the N14 between Ventersdorp and Carletonville.
Two minibus taxis were stopped, and 6 suspects arrested after 30 sheep and 18 goats were found inside the vehicles.
Police say the suspects will appear before the Ventersdorp Magistrates Court on Monday, 22 July for being in possession of suspected stolen livestock.
In another separate incident reported later on the same night, Boons police members on patrol on the R509 road (between Derby and Magaliesburg), noticed a suspicious Toyota Quantum taxi.
The vehicle was stopped and two passengers jumped out of the vehicle and ran off, but police arrested two others. When searching inside the taxi, police found 37 goats and the suspects could not explain why they were in possession of the livestock.
The suspects, aged 30 and 38, will appear before the Koster Magistrates’ Court on Monday, 22 July 2024, for possession of suspected stolen goats.
In both these cases, the animals were not marked. The Police would once more like to urge farmers to mark their animals according to the Animal Identification Act, 2002 (Act No 6 of 2002), because many court cases are lost due to disputes regarding the proper identification of animals. If an animal is marked with a registered brand or tattoo, disputes will be avoided.
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