Three men have been charged with stealing 56 sheep, including rare research animals with unique scientific value, from a government agricultural research institute, authorities said on Thursday.
Investigators believe many of the animals that have not been recovered may have been slaughtered during the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, which was observed last week.
Security camera footage shows suspects allegedly stealing sheep from the Volcani Institute in central Israel
(Video: Israel Police)
According to an indictment filed in Magistrate’s Court in Ramla, the three suspects, from the central Israeli city of Rehovot and the southern Bedouin town of Lakiya, are charged with offenses including trespassing, livestock theft, theft of property with scientific value and other related crimes. Two of the defendants have prior criminal records.
The investigation began after the Volcani Institute, Israel’s national agricultural research center, filed a complaint last month with Border Police investigators. The theft involved 56 sheep from the institute’s facilities in Rishon Lezion, south of Tel Aviv, including five rare research animals.
The institute has spent years conducting genetic research on White Dorper sheep, a breed valued for agricultural and medical research. According to researchers, some of the stolen animals represented years of scientific work and were considered irreplaceable.
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Some of the sheep recovered by investigators after the theft from the Volcani Institute
(Photo: Israel Police)
One ewe was the only animal of its kind in Israel after undergoing a genetic modification designed to produce only female offspring. Another had received gene therapy treatment for day blindness.
Researchers said the theft occurred just one day before a scheduled egg-retrieval procedure, a critical stage in efforts to preserve the unique genetic line.
Investigators described the case as complex and fast-moving, involving intelligence gathering, analysis of communications records, technological surveillance, undercover operations and the use of security cameras along roads leading from the institute.
According to the indictment, the suspects allegedly worked with additional accomplices and used a truck fitted with fake license plates, as well as another vehicle towing a trailer. Investigators believe the group entered the institute through a breach in the perimeter fence that had been prepared in advance.
The sheep were allegedly removed in two separate trips and transported toward Bedouin communities in southern Israel. Security camera footage reportedly captured suspects, some with their faces covered, removing the animals from the facility. A suspect vehicle was later recorded on Highway 6, Israel’s main north-south toll road.
In a joint operation involving Border Police investigators and Agriculture Ministry inspectors, authorities recovered 20 of the 56 stolen sheep in Lakiya.
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Security camera footage shows the stolen sheep being transported along Highway 6 following the theft
(Photo: Israel Police)
According to court documents, investigators found a text message on one suspect’s phone that was sent on the day police searched his home. The message read: “People came and checked the area. There’s nothing there. It’s 5 kilometers away ... warn the people.”
During questioning, however, the suspect denied knowing the sheep had been stolen from the institute and said he had only transported them.
The suspects’ detention was repeatedly extended during the investigation. This week, prosecutors filed indictments and requested that all three remain in custody until the conclusion of legal proceedings.
In seeking their continued detention, prosecutors argued that the alleged offenses harmed not only farmers but also the broader public because of their economic impact and potential effects on agricultural production.