Friday, 30 June 2023
By: Carien Kruger
The high court in Mahikeng has granted an order allowing the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) to seize vehicles that were used in the theft of livestock from farmer Piet Tlhabanyane in Ottoshoop, North West, last year.
Sarel Pretorius, chairman of the Agri North West Livestock Theft Prevention Forum, welcomes the order and says it should be standard procedure but happens rarely.
According to a statement by North West police, the order relates to an incident on November 10, 2022, when seven suspects were arrested after being found in possession of stolen cattle.
The vehicles that can be seized under the court order are a Toyota Land Cruiser, an Isuzu bakkie, a Hino truck and two trailers that were used to steal farmer Piet Tlhabanyane’s livestock.
When the suspects were arrested, the Land Cruiser was towing a trailer loaded with nine Bonsmara cattle, and there were about 18 Bonsmara cattle on the Hino truck.
The court agreed with the national director of public prosecutions that the vehicles were used to commit the crime, leave the crime scene and evade arrest by the police, lawful owners and community forums.
Concerning
Pretorius says it should be standard procedure to seize vehicles used in the commission of a crime, but it rarely happens.
“From the farmers’ perspective, we are very concerned that vehicles are often returned. Often, the owner of the vehicle claims that it was stolen and that he did not know it was used in a crime. However, he is not required to open a theft case. It then happens that the same vehicle is used in more than one crime and is simply returned each time.”
Pretorius says the involvement and assistance of farmers in the area were crucial in apprehending the suspects in November’s incident.
According to the NPA, the case will be heard again on August 11 for a regional court placement.
Landbou.com reported in November last year that bail was granted to seven suspects in the case: Willem Petrus Boshoff, Carel Stephan Wallis, Ntlhothana Motswabangwe, Rapula Letsapa, Johannes Wessel, Simon Wessel, and Janine Hill.
Thanks to a joint operation between farmers and the police, besides the stolen cattle, other suspected stolen cattle were also found on another farm at the time.
Dr Rachel Makhari, director of public prosecution in North West, Lt. Gen. Sello Kwena, provincial police commissioner, and Maj. Gen. Patrick Mbotho, provincial head of priority crime investigations, expressed their belief in the cooperation between the NPA, the police, the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigations, farmers’ forums, and the asset forfeiture unit in the fight against organized crime.
They emphasized that livestock theft is an organised crime that is widespread and affects both emerging farmers and the country’s economy.
