THE rain gauge was brimful, parched paddocks began to revive in line with bush spirits, and livestock prices spiralled upwards as in summer 2010-11,the State welcomed its first real soaking in a decade.
Within months, crossbred ewes worth just $53 a year earlier were selling like hotcakes for $120 – a 126 per cent increase – and by May 2010 breeding ewes were hard to buy for less than $200 a head.
Good news for drought weary producers – and a prime time for livestock thieves to make a quick buck.
Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOSCAR) data dramatically reflects the market for meat and wool, rising from the doldrums in late 2009 to reach peaks in autumn-winter 2010.
It is no coincidence that sheep theft spiralled as a new national heavy lamb record of $203 a head was set at Wagga Wagga in August 2010
The South Eastern statistical division, which includes Booroowa, Harden, Upper Lachlan Shire, Yass Valley and Young, had 69 reported stock thefts from October 2009 to September 2010.
The following year, that figure boomed to 137 – a 98.6pc increase – and the trend is similar in most areas of the State with stock thefts remaining steady or escalating, a trend that is not surprising given sizzling saleyard prices: $206 a head at Forbes, $240 at Cowra and $243.50 at Narracorte last February.
In the North Western region, reported thefts jumped from 68 to 96, a 41.2pc increase, and in the Central West, a rise from 61 to 85 equated to a 39.3pc increase.
“We saw a trend in the first half of 2011 where there was a significant increase in reported losses of sheep,” NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Geoff McKechnie confirmed.
“We tend to see spikes in stock theft following rain; it’s about seasonal values of sheep, market conditions – sheep are so valuable people are prepared to risk going to jail, whereas if they were worth $10 each numbers would be far less.
“When sheep are worth a lot and there’s feed available to hide them on property then theft increases – but there have been some very significant sentences handed down in recent times,” he said.
“You’re dealing with the theft of commodities worth very large amounts of money and the courts take a dim view of it.”
By and large, the offenders are “people you’d have a beer with at the local pub”, according to parliamentary secretary for police, Geoff Provest.
The Nationals MP for Tweed is pinning his hopes on the project Rural Eyewatch, which relies on social media site Facebook for real time information sharing with community members taking the lead.
NSW has 33 rural crime investigators who work closely with police local area commands, the Department of Primary Industries and National Parks and Wildlife Service officers, among others. But tracking down stolen animals and catching the crooks is a laborious process.
Assistant Commissioner Geoff McKechnie agrees offenders are not fly-by-nighters who swoop into a property and vanish – quite the contrary.
“They are often people who are employed in rural industries and have a very good knowledge of what is happening in the industry in their area, they know the locations very well, and can generally move about without raising too many suspicions,” Assistant Commissioner McKechnie said.
“Most of them have been doing this for many years.”
Opposition spokesman for Regional and Rural Affairs Mick Veitch said police resources needed boosting, saying stock theft increased by 31.7pc in the year to September 2011.
He said there were 686 incidences of stock theft this year, up from 521 last year.
“The cost of stock theft to farmers and rural properties is significant and the government needs to treat this problem with the seriousness it deserves,” Mr Veitch said.
“It can be quite difficult to police because of the sheer size of the regions. Coming out of the drought everyone knew replacement stock was going to be pricey, especially breeding stock.
“Once you increase the value of a prime commodity it is not staggering that it becomes a target for people to pinch. And these people have become a bit more modern in their approach.”
He agreed a national approach combining a range of authorities could be needed.
Reports indicate while stock theft on the NSW-Victorian border, around Young and Wagga Wagga, and in Far Western NSW is increasing, so too is theft of machinery and other equipment such as steel, and thieves are active in South Australia and Victoria.
Livestock owners have reported as many as 400 head of sheep stolen – usually taken in smaller numbers over several swoops.
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