In the UK, three men have been charged and are set to appear in court after farm equipment worth more than £20,000 (€21,715) was recovered at an auction.
The three men have been charged with conspiracy to handle stolen goods, according to the Northamptonshire Police.
A joint investigation by both Northamptonshire Police and Cumbria Police led to the recovery of the machinery earlier this year.
The three men involved were named as: 52-year-old William Furey from Howard Biley Gardens, Northampton; 27-year-old Joseph Furey from Jubilee Drive, Walgrave; and 30-year-old William Furey from Knox Road, Wellingborough.
All three men have been charged with conspiracy to dishonestly receive stolen goods in Carlisle, Cumbria, on or before January 1, 2017. They are scheduled to appear before magistrates in Carlisle on September 12.
Theft
Earlier this year it was revealed that farmers – on average – are willing to take a ‘financial hit’ of €1,711 rather than report an incident of theft.
That was according to the results of a survey carried out by the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ Association (ICSA) in conjunction with the Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT).
Speaking following the publication of the second tranche of results from the survey, the President of the ICSA, Patrick Kent, said farmers and people in rural Ireland cannot be expected to continue to withstand this level of crime.
“The financial cost of agricultural crime is an unacceptable burden and one that cannot be written-off as part and parcel of life in rural Ireland.
We now have proof that agricultural crime is hitting farmers’ pockets at a time when most are struggling to make ends meet at all.
“Theft, vandalism and fly-tipping all have serious cost implications for farmers, as do increased insurance premiums when farmers have to make a claim,” Kent said.