Butcher among two held for cattle theft

KOCHI: The police on Wednesday arrested two persons in connection with the theft of a buffalo. The arrested are Muhasin, 28, and Mohammad Ali, 20, both natives of Keezhamadu.The animal was stolen from the house of Kuttamassery native Pushkaran on June 24. "Pushkaran sold the buffalo to slaughter it as part of the upcoming Eid al-Adha celebration. However, the buyers entrusted him to rear the animal for now. The accused stole the animal and shifted it to an open field at Kerankunnam area," a police officer said.

The accused were identified after checking the CCTV visuals of the area. Muhasin, who runs a slaughterhouse, planned to sell the meat of the stolen buffalo.The police suspect that the accused are involved in similar thefts before. "The accused have confessed to the crime. It could have been difficult to identify the stolen animal as cattle dealers from other states send their buffalos to the open fields in Kerankunnam to graze. Luckily, the horns of the buffalo were painted by the owner which helped us identify it," a police official said.

Incidents of cattle theft is on the rise in the district following its high-demand as part of Eid al-Adha celebration next week. Last week, an Asokapuram native was arrested by the Ernakulam Rural Police for stealing eight buffalos from Aluva and Kalamassery.