Stolen Mayaro sheep, goats back home

THE staff at the Mayaro Breeding Unit are elated that 38 sheep and 18 goats which were stolen on Sunday are back home.

Police said the robbery with violence and larceny happened around 1 am. The watchman reported that two armed men tied him up and took the keys to the building, a tractor and his Toyota Yaris, as well as his cellphone.

On Wednesday, a Debe man was arrested for the theft of a total of 94 sheep and goats. The other suspect has not yet been found.

Mayaro CID and Task Force, led by Sgt Bhim, found the animals during a police exercise in Mayaro.

Speaking with Newsday on Friday morning, Florencia Beckles-Gangaram, county agricultural officer for Nariva/Mayaro, said although the animals seemed “a bit shaken up,” she is relieved they are back in safe hands.

“We are certainly happy.

"We have lost animals twice in the recent past. A similar incident took place where people broke into the Rio Claro facility and we lost all the animals we had there and we never recovered any.

“We are happy the police service could have operated the way it did.

"We really didn’t expect to get them back alive and we got back all of them. Although they are a little bit traumatised – they actually look like they were not treated well – they’re alive and we plan to treat them and revive them to full health.”

The sheep and goats are being quarantined as a safety precaution as it is believed they may have mingled with other animals. They will be tested for possible diseases.