Group followed clues to the missing machinery
By Diego Flammini
Assistant Editor, North American Content
Farms.com
Who needs the police when you have farmers?
A group of Saskatchewan farmers and their neighbours tracked down two stolen tractors using available clues.
David Husband stored two, 200-horsepower tractors in a shed on his neighbour’s property near Harris, SK. On July 30, Husband’s neighbour discovered the tractors were missing and told him.
After authorities were notified, Husband called some fellow farmers to warn them about what happened.
One of Husband’s neighbours told him he’d seen a tractor driving north the night before. That’s when they decided to conduct an investigation of their own.
"Off we went and when we turned north towards Bents, (SK) we could see the tracks in the gravel so that's when we say 'OK, we're not far behind, we'll just keep going,'" Husband told CBC.
The group would notice the presence of tracks, or lack thereof, signaling when the tractor changed direction.
The search continued with one more hill and the discovery of the tractors.
"The last hill we came over and we came down the hill and looked into, just to the right a little bit, and there they were sitting in an abandoned yard," Husband told CBC.
The police were called and escorted Husband onto the property to retrieve his machines.
He said one older gentleman paying attention is the reason they were able to find the stolen property.