Farmers unite to tackle stock theft

THREE men suspected of stealing hundreds of sheep and cattle are being detained by Eastern Cape farmers who are annoyed over rampant stock theft.

The rustlers are believed to be from Lesotho and were apprehended at a house in Mount Fletcher.

Drakensberg police cluster spokeswoman Warrant Officer Nozuko Handile said police would visit the area to investigate.

The three alleged rustlers are believed to be responsible for the theft of more than 800 sheep and 46 cattle in the area of Mount Fletcher in recent months.

Siphamandla Majikijela, from a group called Peace Committee , a farmers' group which is assisting the community in fighting stock theft in the area, said: "We can confirm that three people have been arrested and we have since recovered hundreds of sheep and cattle.

"We will detain them until we get all the information we need regarding this rampant stock theft in the area."

The farmers said they were targets of cross-border stock theft, and that it was costing them millions of rands.

Majikijela said some of the farmers who were victims were emerging commercial farmers. "We are losing millions of rands through this. We had to unite and fight this, we are not going to depend on the police to help us, we are the victims, not them (police)."

The arrests come after police recently busted 10 suspects in Qumbu. The Qumbu suspects are believed to be part of a stock theft ring operating in the Mthatha area.

Their arrests came after an intelligence-driven operation was conducted in the Qumbu, Tsolo and Sulenkama areas by a heavy police contingent. The arrests led to the recovery of 239 cattle in Qumbu.

In November last year, delegates from across the province and Lesotho gathered in Aliwal North to take part in an indaba aimed at finding ways to curb stock theft.

Organised by the Eastern Cape safety and liaison department to find solutions to the rampant crime that is threatening the livelihood of farmers, the indaba also looked at ways to combat stock theft along the Lesotho and South African border.

It was revealed that during the period April 2010 to September 2011, more than 7400 head of livestock had been stolen in Eastern Cape alone, mostly in the Transkei region.

Mzamo Mini, a farmer from Mount Fletcher, said yesterday the unity that farmers had in the area was giving them hope that they would win this decades-long syndicate-operated crime.

"This is a syndicate operated thing. Our cattle are stolen to make money and our lives are at risk here because of this."

Zamayedwa Zweni , Eastern Cape stock theft coordinator based in the Maluti district, said crime was under control until this recent incident. "There are people who cross the border to come and steal from this side. That is worrying us as we cannot arrest them while they have crossed the border to Lesotho."

Last week, Eastern Cape police commissioner Lieutenant-General Celiwe Binta said curbing stock theft was a priority. "Stock farming is the livelihood of many families and often their only means to sustain themselves, hence the SAPS will continue with these operations as part of the rural safety plan."