Wicklow farmers offer reward for information leading to the conviction of sheep thieves.
The Wicklow Cheviot Sheep Owners' Association is willing to pay for information to combat sheep stealing.
A special fund has been set up out of which £1,000 will be devoted to payments for information leading to the conviction of people found guilty of stealing or receiving stolen sheep.
There has been a fresh wave of sheep rustling in the Wicklow mountains. This may have been sparked by a new agreement with France on the access of Irish lamb to the French market. The result has been a rise in sheep meat prices on the domestic market.
The sheep flocks have become the targets of organised gangs of thieves.
As well as offering financial rewards for information on rustlers, sheep farmers are also mounting vigilante patrols. Farmers have evidence that sheep are being shot having found fleeces and bullets in the Wicklow and Sally Gap areas.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 12 January 1978. The reporter is Dermot Mullane.
