Crime-fighting children foiled goatnappers

Crime-fighting children from Batchelor in Australia's Northern Territory came to the rescue over the weekend when two would-be thieves tried to goatnap popular local goat, Billy. Batchelor Butterfly Farm owner Chris Horne said two cars, a red Mitsubishi and a Red Toyota ute pulled over when Billy was grazing near the road. “We let him out occasionally, to much on some fresh grass,” he said.



Mr Horne said the two cars pulled up next to the Butterfly farm. “The Toyota had a dog cage on the back, and the two blokes were trying drag him away,” Mr Horne said. “I just saw these fellas trying to take Billy away and I thought: ‘You’ve gotta be kidding me!’ “They didn’t have much luck though, he’s a big boy.” Mr Horne said a number of local children came running, yelling at the men. “They were yelling, ‘they’re trying to take Billy’,” he said.

“All the local kids know him from the petting zoo.” Mr Horne said if the thieves had succeeded, Billy’s three wives would have been left to raise Billy’s growing family alone. “He’s got a son and a daughter at the moment, and two of his wives are pregnant too,” he said. Billy’s daughter is Ruby, and his son is Conan the Barbarian. “Can you imagine having to tell Conan the Barbarian that his father was gone?”



The attempted theft has left Mr Horne confused and worried. “I’m thinking of hiring a security guard,” he said. “But it’s still a bit strange. Who tries to steal a goat? It’s like they’ve said to each other, ‘let’s go down to Litchfield Park for the day and bring back a goat’.” Mr Horne said he left a message with local police, but is yet to hear back. “I want to know what the penalty is for stealing a farm animal,” he said. “I hope it’s still hanging.”