Hunt for allegedly stolen sheep ends with man tied to a tree and murder

Three foreign nationals will appear in court on Thursday, 13 June 2024, following their arrest for an attack on a sheep farmer.

A missing person’s report was opened at a police station near Ficksburg after a Lesotho national reported he had been separated from his uncle after running into trouble with three shepherds.

The boy and his uncle had entered the area of a cross-border farm looking for their missing sheep that they suspected had been stolen.

All parties involved were from Lesotho

While searching, they encountered three shepherds, also Lesotho nationals, and an altercation ensued. The three men tied the nephew and his uncle to a tree, but the boy was able to free himself and flee the scene.

The uncle was reported missing on Sunday, 9 June. The following day, police were contacted by a farm manager who had found a body in the bushes.

“Upon arrival, the police inspected the person, who sustained a fatal open wound on his forehead and had blood-stained clothes. It was established that the deceased person is the same person reported missing on Sunday, 9 June,” confirmed Free State provincial police spokesperson Warrant Officer Mmako Mophiring.

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Police identified the victim as 41-year-old Kanenelo Mokuoane from Lesotho.

Police returned to the farm were they found the three suspects who were then arrested and charged with murder. The trio will also face charges for being in South Africa without the required documentation.

Stock Theft down in third quarter stats

In the crime stats released for the third quarter of the 2023/24 reporting period, stock theft cases were down by 2.1%. South Africa recorded 7 290 cases of stock theft between October and December 2023, compared to 7 446 during the third quarter of the 2022/23 reporting period.

ALSO READ: Gauteng records rise in murders and robberies

Within the nation’s farming communities, 22 murders were recorded in those three months. Three farmers, two visitors, one employee and 16 farm dwellers made up the number of victims.

In that period, the Free State recorded the third-highest number of stock theft cases with 830. KZN and the Eastern Cape lead the stats with 1 871 and 1 654, respectively.

The fourth quarter stats were due for release on 17 May with the Western Cape government calling for their national counterparts to release the numbers as soon as possible.