Mango Thieves Strike Again: Farmers Frustrated by Growing Crop Theft

As the mango season hits full stride in Antigua, farmers are once again facing an all-too-familiar threat: crop theft. Recalling her losses after discovering a large quantity of mangoes stolen from her farm or even catching these young village thieves red handed, farmers are becoming frustrated with the series of thefts plaguing the island’s agricultural community.

Speaking to Antigua.News, a registered farmer from the Old Road community, who wishes to not reveal her identity, has shared her frustration over the matter.

“All of them are coming to our grounds, stealing our mangoes and different stuff and bringing them on Friars Hill Road to sell,” The frustrated farmer told Antigua.News. “We as the farmers have to work our ground and pay for our ground. We are the registered farmers, not the thief and them.”

The matter has been reported to the police, but yet the farmer said the thieves are still coming to the ground and making away with her produce.

“We call the police, the police come and say they go warn the parents, I said they are not going to warn the parents because he’s doing the same thing.”

The farmers’ appeals for stronger police intervention have so far gone unanswered. “We go and meet them on our ground, call the police and the police are not coming. We need help, even from the Commissioner of Police, we need help,” she pleaded.

This isn’t the first time farmers have fallen victim to crop theft. There has been a steady increase in reports of stolen produce, from mangoes and bananas to livestock and farming equipment.

Calls are now intensifying for law enforcement and government officials to step in with more effective measures to protect the country’s agricultural sector and the people who sustain it.