A group of Salem farmers caught five alleged poachers after a tip-off on Sunday night.
The eight farmers who run the 150ha communal farm, Ripley, near Salem, said people from neighbouring farms had told them there were people entering their property at night to hunt for small game.
"We have been looking for these people for four months and finally we managed to nab them last Sunday," said one of the Ripley farmers, Gibson Nombewu.
A group of Salem farmers caught five alleged poachers after a tip-off on Sunday night.
The eight farmers who run the 150ha communal farm, Ripley, near Salem, said people from neighbouring farms had told them there were people entering their property at night to hunt for small game.
"We have been looking for these people for four months and finally we managed to nab them last Sunday," said one of the Ripley farmers, Gibson Nombewu.
Nombewu said that after a tip-off on Sunday, he and four fellow farmers, in two bakkies, had chased and caught five men with nine dogs. He said the men told them they were from Kenton-on-Sea.
"We suspect that there is a syndicate behind this, because there are cars who transport these people to and from the farm," Nombewu said. "When we were escorting them out of the farm, we saw a Toyota bakkie that looked suspicious, that turned around and drove away after seeing us."
Nombewu said another bakkie, a Ford Bantam, that might be linked to the hunters also took off after they approached. They were unable to get a registration number for either vehicle.
After taking photographs of the men and confiscating their weapons, the farmers released them and warned them not to return.
Nombewu said the farmers had also lost livestock during this period. Nombewu lost two goats, while fellow farmers Qondile Bill and Mthumakeli Bam lost one and three respectively. Vephu Ngqiyaza lost a calf. The farmers believe the hunters' dogs are responsible for these losses.
Approached by Grocott's Mail for comment, police in Grahamstown said the farmers could open a case of illegal hunting on their farm and the police would then investigate the matter.
