NELSPRUIT – Three cows were killed on Friday afternoon after an attack on a cowherd near Mara.
Mr Abel Nkosi who works for a farmer in the area, followed his cows to the banks of the Crocodile River. He apparently said he was not aware of the fact that he was on another farmer’s property.
He was approached by the owner of the farm who was riding a quad bike. He allegedly shouted profanities at the cowherd and pulled out a firearm. Nkosi said the farmer chased him and fired two rounds at him. He ran for his life.
The shots missed him. The farmer then apparently cornered three of the cattle and fired three more rounds.
Nkosi later went back to the riverbank to find the cattle. He found one cow had been shot in the neck and later died of its injuries. Two more were already dead.
The owner of the cows phoned the police. Sgt Gerald Sedibe communications officer of provincial police, said the SAPS was searching for the farmer and would arrest him on charges of attempted murder and cruelty to animals.
Because the suspect had not yet been arrested, the owner of the cattle did not want to comment.
Mpumalanga head of communications for COPE, Mr Riot Hlatshwayo said, “Our organisation’s responsibility is to defend the National Constitution, which is aimed at, among others, eliminating racial hatred.
We accept that the farmer accused of shooting the unarmed cattle belonging to his neighbour for whatever reason, is innocent until proven otherwise by a court of law but we still believe that what happened was a case of racial discrimination. Our belief stems from the first-hand information we received on the spot, less than an hour after the shooting.”
At the time of going to press the police could not yet confirm whether the suspect had been arrested.
