STATISTICS from the Zimbabwe Republic Police anti-stocktheft department show that more than 3 000 cattle were stolen across the country in the first four months of 2017.

By Tinotenda Munyukwi

January had the highest number, with 1 069 reported cases, and the number decreased significantly to 622 cases in April.

In an interview with NewsDay Weekender, Chief Superintendent Andrew Phiri, the staff officer in the department of anti-stock theft at the Police General Headquarters, said most cases were a result of failure by farmers to pen their cattle and count them regularly.

“Farmers need to count their herd from time to time, practice penning and should stop the habit of just letting their cattle graze without any supervision, as failure to do so might result in theft,” he said.

Phiri said branding was an important part of securing cattle, as most thieves prefer unbranded beasts.

He advised the public to report cases of stock theft immediately to allow police investigations to take place promptly.

“Zimbabweans should not wait to report a case of stolen cattle after one week, as this stalls investigations, making the work of the police inefficient, because we rely on evidence in doing our work,” he said.