Praedial larceny unit arrests 65, recover 171 animals in 3 months
KINGSTON, Jamaica – One-hundred-and-seventy-one stolen cows, pigs, goats and 19 bee boxes were recovered by the Praedial Larceny Prevention Unit between March 2 and June 2, 2015 – three months since the unit’s establishment.
A release from the Jamaica Constabulary Force’s Corporate Communication’s Unit said that approximately 4,120 pounds of assorted meat have also been seized in the three-month period.
Between March 2 and June 2, the release continued, 94 offences have been detected and 65 people arrested in relation to breaches of the Agricultural Produce Act, Unlawful Possession of Property Act, The Public Health Act, Food and Drug Act, and the Larceny Act in the parishes of St Elizabeth, Clarendon, St James, Hanover, St Thomas, and Kingston and St Andrew.
“The unit is not only focused on operational activities but on community development and nation building,” the CCU said. “Through this effort, 27 community meetings and 46 farms have been visited islandwide. Twenty-three Farm Watch Groups are currently in operation and more are expected to be launched throughout the island as a means of ensuring sustainable development in the agricultural sector, as well as to ensure that farmers reap what they grow.”
Meanwhile, farmers are being encouraged to register with the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) and the Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS) as this will not only ensure farmers are regularised but will provide them with access to the National Animal Identification and Traceability System (NAITS) and allow them ease of verification should they be stopped by the police.
“This system will assist with the tagging of animals and ensure the effective use of DNA to track animals,” CCU explained. “Framers are also being reminded to get their receipt books and issue the corresponding receipt when selling their produce; buyers are also to ensure that they are issued with receipts when purchasing goods.”
The Praedial Larceny Prevention Unit can be contacted at the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries at 927-1731-50.
