A 26-year-old man from Herefordshire has been ordered to pay £11,000 for stealing over 600 sheep from four locations between November 2020 and January 2021.
This figure was deemed to be the amount that Daniel Smith, from Sutton St. Nicholas, Hereford, benefited from the crimes. It was also the amount that Smith was found to have available.
He was consequently ordered to pay the £11,000, within three months, at Worcester Crown Court yesterday (Tuesday, March 8).
“Smith has been stripped of the trappings of his crime by powers under the Proceeds of Crime Act, as a result of a financial investigation by West Mercia Police Economic Crime Unit,” said Detective Inspector Emma Wright of the Economic Crime Unit, West Mercia Police.
“A Confiscation Order imposed, means he must pay back the full amount of £11,000, or face time in prison.”
Wildlife Crime Officer PC Josh Kitchen of West Mercia Police added:
“We are pleased with the result of this investigation and hope that it reassures the farming community that livestock theft will not be tolerated and that police will fully investigate these incidents.
“Livestock thefts across the UK totalled £2.3 million in 2020 and the act often causes suffering for the animals and additional financial pressures for farmers.
“I would like to thank the farmers involved for their assistance in this investigation as well as the cooperation of Hereford Livestock Market. Without their assistance it is unlikely these sheep would have ever been recovered.”
One of the victims of Smith’s crimes identified sheep being sold as those stolen from his farm and subsequently 92% of the stolen sheep were recovered over the following two days in March 2021.
