SYDNEY: NSW Police say a market gardener in Sydney’s west came close to apprehending a man allegedly stealing crops from his and other small-lot farms in the area.
“Unfortunately the man we wish to question broke free and fled when the farmer attempted to detain him,” a police spokesperson said.
“We are now appealing for public assistance in identifying this man who has been causing distress and financial harm to battling farming families,” the police spokesperson said.
“For some time now melon farmers in the area have been noticing their crops being denuded.
“They have been planting and watering seedlings and waiting patiently for the melon vines to grow and produce fruit, only to have the crop disappear.”
One of the affected farmers who had seen the suspect in his lot and attempted to apprehend him told The Bug of his ordeal.
“It was clear to me that animals were not eating the melons because there were no remnants left behind,” said the farmer who did not wish to be identified.
“They either vanished completely or were found snapped from their vine and left bruised on the ground. It as if they had been dropped while being juggled. Very odd.
“That’s when I set up motion-sensitive hidden security cameras which I monitored live and caught the suspect in action. (main picture)
“I snuck up on him but he saw me at the last second just as I grabbed him. We wrestled for a minute or so but he broke free and ran away.”
The anonymous farmer said the fruit thief obviously knew what he wanted.
“He only takes ripe melons, two in fact – as you do,” he said. “He also obviously knows how to tell a ripe one – its yellow underneath from being in contact with the ground, and gives a dull, hollow sound when tapped.
“In fact, those are the exact same characteristics I detected about the thief when I tackled him,” the farmer said.
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