Byline: Refeloe Letsoisa
29 July 2024
Police in Bethal are working tirelessly to create a no-go area for criminals in the area by making sure that they create a safe and secure environment for all people in the Republic by preventing and combating anything that may threaten the safety of any community, investigating any crime that threatens the safety and security of any community, and ensuring that criminals are brought to justice.
The mandate was achieved in the early hours of Friday 26 July 2024, when the police were conducting visible policing duties within Bethal policing precinct when they spotted a white BMW with a trailer and alerted the driver to stop in order to conduct a stop and search.
The driver of the suspicious vehicle did not stop soon as he realised that the police were following him, but the police kept following until they intercepted him as he was with four (4) other occupants and requested to conduct a search on the vehicle.
Before conducting the search, police asked the driver about the contents of the trailer, as it was locked and they could not see what was inside. The driver informed the police about the contents of the trailer before opening it, and the police instructed him to open the trailer for verification.
Upon opening and verifying the contents, police found 13 goats loaded, and when they asked the driver and occupants about their reason for their possession and where they got the goats, while the police were still busy with the interview of the suspects, one of them ran away.
The driver then informed the police that they stole them at the farm between Middelburg and Hendrina with the intention of selling them in Bethal.
The dedicated police conducted preliminary investigations where the driver took them to where the goats were stolen, whereby the lawful owner was found and taken to Bethal for identification of the goats, and she positively identified them with their ear tags.
The police never hesitated and arrested the three suspects for possession of stolen livestock or produce and charged them accordingly.
All suspects appeared before Bethal Magistrate’s Court on Friday, 26 July 2024, facing charges of possession of stolen livestock or produce, and the matter was postponed to 01 August 2024, for a formal bail application.