By Roelof Bezuidenhout
As a victim of large-scale livestock theft, I know the sense of hopelessness it leaves behind – the feeling that the thieves will never be caught, that you’ll never recover what you’ve lost, and that you’re largely defenceless against greedy, unscrupulous and sometimes dangerous syndicates.
One night a few years ago, thieves stole 85 of my five-month-old Angora goat kids. They were herded from a camp on my farm through a neighbour’s veld to a secluded side road, where they were loaded onto a truck and trailer. The next morning, I found the cut fence, tyre tracks and footprints in the dirt. At the time, the direct loss amounted to nearly R200 000, but the true cost runs deeper – especially the long-term income lost from the female goats, which would have become breeding stock. That loss is irrecoverable.
What stood out to me was that the kids were stolen at the precise moment they were worth the most – just before their first shearing. Someone must have been watching the flock or had inside information. The thieves also seemed to know the lay of the land, where the fences were, where the goats slept at night, and how to move undetected. They must have had significant help.
In my case, the thieves took both the goats and their valuable coats. But mohair theft is on the rise, with criminals targeting everything from farm shearing sheds to brokers’ warehouses. There have even been hijackings. Reports suggest that large syndicates are behind these crimes. In several regions, farmers have switched to game farming to escape the scourge.
As a veteran detective remarked, these criminals are both clever and lazy, spending their days plotting new ways to strip law-abiding farmers of their hard-earned flocks or herds under the cover of night. They have no concern for the financial losses suffered by producers, the damage to local economies, or the burden placed on taxpayers. And given the vastness of South Africa’s farms and the isolation of its roads, they know they would have to be exceptionally careless to be caught red-handed.
A criminological perspective
Cecili Doorewaard-Janse van Vuuren of Unisa’s Department of Criminology and Security Science has interviewed many convicted stock thieves to understand what drives them to steal. Of course, there is a vast difference between an unemployed man who occasionally slaughters an animal for the pot and a hardened member of a professional syndicate. In many cases, these crimes are carried out with extreme and unfathomable cruelty.
In most cases, self-enrichment, financial difficulties, frustration or desperation drives the thief. Other motives include revenge, substance abuse, the pursuit of wealth and status, and the desire to own livestock. Some criminals, Cecili found, felt pressured to meet societal expectations.
Additional factors include a history of criminal behaviour (learned conduct), negative peer influences, little or no formal education, and large family size. Case dockets revealed that many perpetrators were motivated by the need to acquire livestock for traditional practices, such as paying lobola.
The findings confirm that stock thieves come from diverse racial, ethnic, socio-economic and cultural backgrounds, driven by both greed and necessity. Moreover, the criminal mind is not limited to the stereotypical offender – respected, trusted and even sophisticated individuals may steal without a shred of empathy for their victims. It’s often shocking to discover, if they’re caught, who the true ringleader is.
The perpetrators demonstrated a clear sense of rationality in their decision to commit these crimes. They sought to maximise their gain while minimising the risk of punishment, carefully weighing the costs and benefits. Some even appeared to enjoy the thrill of the risk, which made them operate more efficiently.
Their actions also reflected low self-control, as they engaged in risky behaviour despite knowing they could be caught. They were driven by the immediate gratification of acquiring livestock without effort and making quick money. Additionally, they refused to take responsibility for their crimes, often shifting blame onto others or downplaying their actions by arguing that there were worse crimes than livestock theft.
Most offenders had children but were unmarried – a pattern consistent with statistics for hijackers and cash-in-transit robbers. Nearly a quarter of those studied reported a difficult childhood or troubled family life. Factors such as their family’s socio-economic status, its structure, parental supervision, and a history of criminal behaviour among parents or siblings played a significant role in shaping their path towards crime.
Some had antisocial tendencies from an early age, struggling to get along with their peers during their school years. Some associated with rebellious friends who skipped school and engaged in petty theft, such as stealing chickens – early delinquent behaviour that often carried over into adulthood.
Notably, the perpetrators had knowledge of or experience in handling livestock, often coming from backgrounds as farmworkers, livestock owners or traders. In some cases, even members of the community and police officers were implicated, Cecili found.
Measures to limit stock theft
Farmers believe the law favours the perpetrators rather than the victims. While the SAPS Stock Theft Unit works diligently, it remains severely understaffed and often lacks cooperation from local police stations, particularly in districts where the rule of law has seemingly collapsed. As a result, stock farmers are largely left to protect their own livelihoods. This means doing everything possible to prevent losses, including taking on the thieves at their own game – outwitting and outmanoeuvring them through close collaboration with neighbours and dedicated police officers.
If large-scale stock theft has not yet taken hold in your district, you are fortunate – you still have time to implement strategies to keep it that way. This includes making it clear to potential or suspected thieves that you are vigilant, aware of their presence and prepared for them. Effective measures include regular patrols, employing watchmen, maintaining good relations with the police, and cultivating reliable informants. Roadside cameras, though costly, can be useful, but are not foolproof. Criminals often switch number plates, forcing police to identify vehicles in photos using other markers, such as the position of licence discs on the windscreen.
At a local level, drug or illicit alcohol dealers frequently trade their goods for fresh meat. However, once sophisticated, large-scale syndicates infiltrate a district, only emergency measures can help to control losses – and these require money, effort and sacrifice. Farming during the day while acting as a policeman at night is both exhausting and demoralising. Farmers may also face intimidation, including mysterious phone calls pressuring them not to file or pursue stock theft charges.
The true impact is difficult to quantify
Beyond the financial cost, stock theft forces farmers to limit their use of veld or planted pastures bordering public roads or towns. In other words, thieves prevent farm owners from using their land to its full potential. If vulnerable areas cannot be secured with electric fencing or guards, the only reliable way to prevent losses is to move the animals elsewhere at night, or at least over weekends and holidays.
Taxpayers also bear the cost, as every stolen animal and its lost progeny represent revenue that is never formally marketed. The last figure I heard was that more than 6 000 farm animals are stolen every day. Perhaps the greatest damage, however, is the loss of morale among farmers and the declining confidence in livestock farming as a viable livelihood. The impact is especially severe on resource-poor farmers, who own far fewer animals than commercial farmers. A single theft can wipe them out.
Until affordable genetic and electronic identification systems are developed, the best defence is to brand or tattoo your animals and count them as regularly as possible. You never know when or where thieves will strike.
One final, crucial point: Before reporting a theft, be absolutely certain your animals are genuinely missing. Don’t waste a detective’s time searching for sheep that are simply hiding somewhere on your farm. Double-check every camp before jumping to conclusions.
