'A major kick in the guts': appeal to public to locate 100 missing cattle

Officers from the Rural Crime Prevention Team at the Mid North Coast Police District were called to a property on Fifes Creek Road, Bellbrook after reports 100 head of Brangus cross cattle went missing.

The cattle were last seen when they were mustered on Friday November 17, 2023 and found to be missing on Wednesday, February 7, 2024.

The cattle owner, who has asked to remain anonymous, said that prior to the cattle's disappearance, he was going to have his first sale since two bushfires in 2019 wiped him out.

"That basically decimated my herd, I was forced to sell in the middle of the drought and it's just been a slow recovery," he told The Macleay Argus.

"As I had more money, I would buy more cattle and slowly breed up my herd.

"This was going to be our first real sale and this has happened and basically it's just a major kick in the guts to be honest."

Inquiries made by the cattle owner and investigations to date by Rural Crime Investigators have not been able to locate the cattle in the area.

The cattle are fire branded with KDR and had red coloured management tags with the owner's phone numberand letters DRR, along with NLIS button tags with PIC NC488865.

The cattle have a '7' ear mark on the top of their left ear.

At the time they were last seen, a number of cows had calved and some were still in calf.

The cattle owner and police are appealing for anyone with information that may assist in this investigation or the recovery of the livestock to contact police.

Rural Crime Investigators at Kempsey Police Station can be contacted on 02 6561 6199 or callers can contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

Information is treated in strict confidence.

Police have also reminded the community not to report crime via NSW Police social media pages.