Cattle rustlers strike at Parika Backdam

A cattle farmer of Parika Backdam, Blackwater Trench, East Bank Essequibo suffered about $500,000 in losses when thieves escaped with five of his cows on Wednesday night.

Omar Jeffers, 34, told Stabroek News on Thursday that the men tied one of the cows, killed it, removed the intestines and threw it in the trench. They also chopped the carcass in half but left it by the roadside.

He said the men were probably planning to take the dead cow away “for the meat but like they couldn’t manage.”

Jeffers who resides two miles away from the Bushy Park Public Road said his cows would be tied about 100 rods away from the house.

Around 8 am, a rice farmer informed him about the carcass and inquired whether they had missed any cows. It was only then that he made the discovery.

Cattle rustling seems to be rampant in the area and he recalled that a few years ago he lost four cows. After receiving a tip off, he went to Hog Island in the Essequibo River and found the cows.

Meanwhile, this newspaper was told that in December Jeffers’ brother lost a generator and water pump.