2 alleged cattle rustlers charged after search of Sask. farm: RCMP

A man and a woman, both 59, are accused of cattle rustling after livestock from Alberta and Saskatchewan were found at a farm in the rural municipality of Prairie Rose last month, police say.

In a Thursday news release, RCMP in Lanigan, Sask., say the arrests were made after a search of Caprina Farms and Ranching, near the village of Jansen, Sask., on June 9.

That followed a five-month investigation by Lanigan RCMP, Alberta RCMP's livestock investigations section and members of the non-profit Livestock Services of Saskatchewan.

"Having farmers and ranchers able to specifically identify that something was amiss with their herd, or that animals were missing, and then take time out of their day to report it was key to this investigation," RCMP Staff Sgt. Greg Abbott said in the release.

"In this instance, it specifically resulted in linkages being made to other interprovincial files, and ultimately resulted in a much larger investigation and charges laid."

A woman has been charged with five counts of cattle theft, two counts of trafficking stolen cattle, fraudulently marking cattle and causing animals to be in distress.

A man is facing one count each of cattle theft, trafficking stolen cattle, fraudulently marking cattle and causing animals to be in distress.

They were released with conditions and are due in Humboldt provincial court on Aug. 24.

RCMP are reminding cattle owners to brand their livestock, as "branding is really the only definite means of animal identification."

The village of Jansen, where the farm is registered as a business, is located about 140 kilometres southeast of Saskatoon.