Odd man out. . . Cornered goat thief goes on all fours in kraal

By Melissa Chekwa

A man’s hopes for fresh meat were shattered when he was stopped in his tracks disguised as a goat inside the goat’s kraal attempting to capture one at Springs Farm village near Imbizo Barracks.

The 24-year-old Artwell Ncube who had managed to gain entry into Silas Ngwenya’s (63) home was caught red-handed by Ngwenya trying to steal a goat that was inside the kraal.

It was heard in court that when Ncube saw he was about to be caught, he allegedly knelt and took the posture of a goat holding on to the horns of the goat that was facing him.

Prosecuting, Mehluli Ndlovu said Ngwenya’s neighbour heard funny noises before noticing Ncube suspiciously loitering around Ngwenya’s kraal around 10pm last month. The neighbour quickly went to alert Ngwenya who was inside the house that is in the same yard with the kraal.

The neighbour accompanied Ngwenya to the kraal and they reportedly saw Ncube among the many goats standing on all fours imitating a goat posture. He was holding onto the horns of the goat that was in front of him with part of his head showing.

The duo reportedly chucked Ncube from his posture and questioned the allegedly stammering Ncube at the time as to what he was doing in Ngwenya’s kraal. They apprehended and dragged him to Queens Park Police Station where they reported and opened a case against him.

In his defence, Ncube said he was not trying to steal any of Ngwenya’s goats but instead he had scurried for cover inside Ngwenya’s yard.

“I was drinking beer with some people at the bar and as we got drunk, they wanted to beat me for some unknown reason. I tried to run away from them and I got inside Ngwenya’s yard. When I saw the kraal I went inside it because I knew that my chasers were not going to be able to find and get to me inside the kraal.

“I clutched on to the horns in front of me for balance and to have a bit of view to see if I had really escaped,” said Ncube.

However, Ngwenya disputed Ncube’s defence as he said that Ngwenya looked sober when he caught him inside the kraal on that day.

Ncube was charged with attempted livestock theft and presiding magistrate at Tredgold, Nomagugu Maphosa remanded him out of custody for sentencing on Friday. B-Metro