$20k reward after traumatised farmer reveals true brutality used to kill prized cattle at their Neergabby farm

A WA farming family is offering a $20,000 reward for information leading to criminal charges after a number of their Angus cattle were deliberately shot multiple times and killed. Lancelin Police say eight Angus yearling heifers and steers were discovered dead at the Manson family’s farm at Neergabby on December 29. The cattle were found in a paddock near Glenrowan Road, about 80km north of Perth. The Manson family believed the incident was “no accident” after finding multiple gunshot wounds in all of the cattle and dog footprints nearby. Carly Manson took to Facebook to share her distress at the incident and urge people to come forward with information. “This happened on my parents’ farm,” she said. “If anyone knows of anything please we urge you to come forward. “We are offering a $20,000 reward to anyone who can give us the information that leads to the conviction of the person or persons behind this.” Originally from Bullsbrook, the Manson family embraced their dream of owning Angus and Clydesdale cattle and bought farms in Orange Springs, Neergabby and Gingin three years ago. Ms Manson told The West Australian she and her mother made the horrible discovery on December 28, when they returned to their homestead after a night away and went to give their youngest cattle some hay. A neighbour had spotted one dead heifer along a fence line, but that was just the beginning. “We got in the vehicle, approached the gate, and saw three under a tree — dead,” Ms Manson said. “We saw another also dead in front of the gate . . . and we were wondering what had happened.” The eight cattle killed were amongst a herd of 40-50, all aged less than a year old. The mother-daughter team said the cattle that were still alive were “cowering” in corners of the paddock. “None were sick, none were injured, but we realised something was really wrong,” Carly said. “We were calling them and they weren’t coming. “They were scared to the point they weren’t coming for food and water. They finally came back to us and we realised the situation was worse than we thought.” What they found was devastating, with signs the cattle had been chased by dogs and shot in a way that implied it was “for fun” rather than a quick kill. “We found tails ripped out, bite marks on their legs . . . and one with an ear cut off,” Ms Manson said. “Knowing that a lot have suffered is just so cruel. Scared and distressed, some of the cattle had injured themselves on fences while trying to escape the spray of bullets and dogs. Some had been killed by shotgun spray, but at least three had copped lethal shots to the head. One young female had her ear cut off. “We just could not believe it. Who would do this? It is basically torture,” Ms Manson said. The incident has left the tight-knit agricultural community in shock, with little leads so far except for a neighbour who reportedly saw pig hunters in the area a few days prior. “People are really shocked, people are saying they cant believe it,” Ms Manson said. “Mum and I can’t go near that paddock anymore . . . it is too heartbreaking. “It hit us hard when we saw them all lined up, ready to be buried. They were only babies, they were happy . . . and someone has decided to kill them.” The cattle were found in a paddock located next to a rarely-used access track traditionally only used by contractors or locals. “It is really important we find out who did this,” Ms Manson said. “If someone could do this to animals, who knows what they could be capable of. “That is what scares me the most, is the people who have done this have no empathy.” Police are seeking any witnesses, information or dashcam footage from the area on December 26 and 28. A WAFarmers spokesman described the incident as a “shocking and deliberate act of cruelty”. “Farmers operate on trust — trust that their livestock are safe in the paddocks and trust that the community respects their property,” he said. “Whoever did this has not only committed a serious crime but has also shown a complete disregard for animals, the farm, and the people who rely on them. Rest assured, the farming community will be on the hunt for whoever did this. “If you’re responsible, you should be worried — because someone knows what you did . . . it’s only a matter of time before you get sold out. Do the right thing and turn yourself in before someone else does it for you.” Shire of Gingin president Linda Balcombe said the incident was “absolutely shocking” “It’s not something I have heard happening in our community,” she said. “So the concern is who is this and why was it done?, so I really hope someone can come forward with information very soon. “It would have been horrible to find cows harmed like that . . . it would have been devastating for the family. “Agriculture is a huge part of our shire, we have a lot of cattle and sheep farmers. “To hear someone is going along and harming their livelihoods and animals is horrible. I am in disbelief because I couldn’t imagine someone doing this, and my question is why?” The incident comes just one month after a 21-year-old Rockingham man was jailed for running down and killing eight calves at a property at Howatharra, in the Mid West, on August 20 last year. Maison John Alexander Booth was under the influence of drugs and alcohol when he committed the “sadistic” crime of mowing down the calves with his Toyota Pardo in the middle of the night. Dash cam or mobile phone vision of anything relating to the Neergabby incident can be uploaded directly at wapf.au.evidence.com/axon/community-request/public/neergabbycattleincident or by phoning Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.