THE Melmoth Stock Theft Unit made a breakthrough when members arrested four suspects who were linked to the theft of eight cattle in the Melmoth area.
The members recovered seven stolen cattle which were returned to the lawful owner.
The arrested suspects, Mtuseni Zulu (59), Mhlonishwa Zulu (31), Khulekani Sibiya (28) and Vusumuzi Ntuli (25) appeared in the Melmoth Magistrate’s Court on Friday 3 January and were remanded in custody until 20 January for further investigation.
Eight cattle to the value of R37 000 were taken from the grazing veld at Ezigagayi area in December.
The owner did not report the matter immediately to the police.
On the New Year’s Day, 1 January the owner received information about the whereabouts of his cattle and he then reported the case to Melmoth Police Station.
A case of stock theft was opened and Melmoth Stock Theft Unit started its investigation. The members followed up information that led them to Langwe area in Melmoth where seven stolen cattle were recovered and four suspects were arrested and charged with stock theft.
One of the animals is still missing.
The KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Commissioner Lt Gen Mmamonnye Ngobeni expressed confidence in the current crime prevention and detection strategy to fight stock theft in the province.
‘We will continue to fight stock theft in partnership with the rural livestock owners.
‘We urge them to properly brand their livestock for speedy identification purposes and also advise them to take necessary precautions to safeguard their livestock while grazing.
‘We commend the substantial recovery of the stolen livestock and arrest of the suspects,’ said Ngobeni.
