It started at the end of summer this year. Then an animal thief entered the 4H farm in Kättilsröd in Gothenburg, cut open the fence and took a rabbit with him.
Since then, the thefts have continued. In total, the farm has gotten rid of eight rabbits, a chicken and a cat in recent months.
According to Kristine “Kicki” Åslund, who is the operations manager for the 4H farm, a total of about 50 animals have been stolen in the Gothenburg area.
– It has been a lot of work, you get angry, pissed off and sad, says Kicki Åslund.
– I don’t understand how anyone could want to do this? It’s terrible, they are the children’s best friends.
According to Kicki Åslund, the thief must have used scissors, pliers and skewers to get at the animals at the 4H farm.
– Then we understood that it is not just about someone who is looking to steal some rabbits, but this is something that goes on systematically, she says.
Tightened security
The 4H farm has been forced to tighten security by installing surveillance cameras and hiring security guards and staff to monitor the farm at night. It has cost the farm around SEK 200,000 so far, according to Kicki Åslund.
– We don’t know what happened to the animals because we didn’t find any. But someone must have seen something, she says.
– It is difficult to have so many animals at home without being discovered.
A suspect
A person captured by the 4H farm’s surveillance cameras has been charged with stealing a rabbit from the farm.
The police are currently analyzing DNA traces from tools left behind, and there are several investigations into animal thefts in the area, according to the police.
– We work based on the theory that there is a connection between the thefts, says police preliminary investigation leader Dick Henriksson to TV4 Nyheterna.
It is still unclear what happened to the stolen animals.
– We have not found any dead animals, says Dick Henriksson.
Facts: A 4H farm
4H is an international non-profit youth organization with activities in everything from farming and animals to sports and theater with a main focus on children and young people aged 6-25.
The goal is, among other things, to spread knowledge about how we save endangered Swedish landraces.
The 4H farms can be found all over Sweden, and it is free to visit the farms.
The organization’s name comes from the four H’s that begin the organization’s motto, “head, heart, hand, health”