SOUTPAN. – A 45-year-old man was sentenced this week to 15 years direct imprisonment for the theft of 21 merino sheep valued at approximately R42 000 on a farm near Soutpan.
According to AO Martin Xuma, Ompi Gert Thaele was found guilty of stock theft in the Bloemfontein magistrate's court. He was also sentenced to a further six months imprisonment or a fine of R3 000 after he failed to appear in court. The sentences run concurrently.
The stock theft case was opened on 24 April 2024 after the 21 merino sheep were stolen.
The Soutpan police were immediately activated and arrested Thaele on the same day near Ikgomotseng, near Soutpan.
The case was assigned to Const. Luyanda Nqae of the Parkweg unit for stock theft and endangered species. A total of 17 of the stolen sheep, valued at approximately R34 000, were recovered on another farm in the Soutpan area.
Thaele was released on bail during court proceedings, but after a few court appearances he failed to appear in court again.
A warrant for his arrest was issued and police arrested him again in August 2026.
He was subsequently found guilty in the Bloemfontein magistrate's court and sentenced to 15 years direct imprisonment for stock theft.
Source: SAPD
This article is an automatic English translation of a Nuusflits article originally published in Afrikaans. Read the Afrikaans original.
