Juici Patties Jamaica Company limited, has responded to Friday’s incident in St. Ann, in which two of the company’s vehicles were intercepted while carrying cattle which were reportedly stolen.

Four men, some of whom are said to be affiliated with the company, have since been charged in relation to the incident.

In a press release on Sunday morning, Juici Patties sought to clarify the circumstances surrounding the incident.

According to the release, all purchases of cattle take place at Juici’s abattoir in Clarendon, however, many small farmers often complain that they do not have transportation for the cattle and ask for assistance with transportation to Clarendon, where the cattle scale is located and where purchasing takes place.

The release said in these instances a truck is sent to assist with transportation; accompanied with a competent and experienced employee to inspect and verify the quality of the animals; the farmer would then travel in a separate vehicle behind the truck to Clarendon where he or she would witness the weighing process and verifies the weight.

The company said no transaction takes place without a receipt from the farmer.

According to the release, an advertisement was recently placed by Juici Patties, inviting farmers wishing to sell cattle, to call the abattoir manager to arrange for purchase.

It said this call came in like any other from someone claiming to be a cattle farmer with cattle for sale, and seeking assistance with transportation.

It said that the abattoir manager spoke with him and made arrangements for inspection and transportation of the cattle which required two company vehicles.

The release said the Juici team went to the location, met the alleged farmer and began to load the cattle when residents in the area approached and alerted the team that the cattle were allegedly stolen.

The company said the seller then fled the scene.

A representative of Juici noted that the team members dispatched had been employed to the company for several years and there was no such incident in the past.

The company said the matter is being dealt with by its attorney.