HE Nature Conservation Service of the Civil Guard (Seprona) de Alicante eliminated a conspiracy dedicated to the secret slaughter of goats and sheep to illegally sell the meat of these specimens. In their operation 305 sheep and goats treated in Alicante and Cox and 22 indicted, ten of whom were investigated for crimes against public health, animal abuse, admission, document tampering and crime simulation.
The other 12 people filed an administrative complaint for the crimes included in the law. Valencia Community Livestock Act 6/2003. In particular, for the transport of animals without the issuance of a sanitary transport document; lack of traceability and identity of animals; failure to provide mandatory information on the food chain; non-authorization of facilities and illegal slaughter of animals; and fraudulent use of identifying marks. According to the Alicante Command, these violations are punishable by fines ranging from 600 to 1,200,000 euros.
Baptized as “operation Chiqueros” began with the initial inspection. Animal farm in AlicanteWhere Seprona found a hundred copies of sheep and goat species. tore off the ear tags to prevent them from being recognized. there were animalsovercrowded, injured and malnourishedin terrible hygienic and sanitary conditions and without veterinary control,” says the Civil Guard.
From a few autonomy
The agents immobilized the animals and began investigating to find out their origin. They were able to understand that they came from different countries, thanks to the fact that some of them were diagnosed with the rumen bolus. Farms in the Community of Valencia, Region of Murcia, Andalusia and Castilla La Manchathat, according to official documents, they were to be transported to a slaughterhouse in Cartagena for slaughter, but were never transferred.
The Civil Guard found another cattle ranch in Cox, where they found another 200 specimens in similar conditions, and some came from the farms they had supplied. positive for tuberculosis.
Seprona investigators were able to confirm that three of those investigated were organized for this purpose and acted as a specialized criminal group in this system. they took Animals that have falsified veterinary documents for transport to an official slaughterhouse in Cartagena for the victim, some of which were even ordered to be destroyed by the health authorities.
But instead of being sent to this slaughterhouse, illegally diverted to farms in Alicante and Coxthey were slaughtered for their erratic sales.
Agents discovered that some samples had been stolen from their origin farm. In other cases, they offered the farmers a higher price than they would have been paid at the slaughterhouse, and the gang later offered it. illegal sale of meat.
between two farms Civil Guard immobilizes 305 goats and sheep Considering the risk of contamination with other samples and the risk arising from their consumption, it was decided to cut and destroy it, since its diseases and veterinary treatments could not be accredited due to lack of traceability.
Nine men and one woman and twelve more men under criminal investigation were charged. All those involved in the incident are Spanish nationals and 31 to 79 years old.
Transactions carried out by Seprona representatives are made available to one person. Alicante Education Court. Administrative files were sent to Valenciana General Directorates of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, General Directorate of Livestock, Fisheries and Fisheries of Murcia Region and General Directorate of Public Health of Murcia Region. Murcia, to the authorities to understand the incident.
The operation was carried out by the Seprona patrol of the Alicante Civil Guard Command in collaboration with the inspectors and veterinarians of the Alicante and Orihuela regional agricultural offices, and the staff of the ministry’s public company VAERSA. The Ministry of Agriculture, which is involved in the identification, marking and sanitation of animals on these two secret farms.
traceability study
The Civil Guard said in a statement that every animal-producing region has a traceability system guarantees that the offered product is healthy and harmless. This animal identity It is essential to guarantee the traceability of the different stages that the products that make up the food chain go through. Inside Europe The metallic bolus option given to the rumen, which is the gastric cavity of ruminants, was chosen. In the agri-food sector, traceability is one of the most important tasks for professionals, as it is an essential element of the sanitary guarantee of their products.