Henry the peacock was stolen, found and is now missing again, say his owners
Durban - Henry the peacock is missing again, which has left his owners from Northdene, Queensburgh, distraught.
The bird, with its trademark colourful plumage and with no feathers in a ring around his neck, caused a social media stir in October when videos showed how he was plucked away by a suspected robber and later rescued after being found stuffed in the boot of a car.
Njabulo Shandu and Sanele Zindela appeared briefly at the Durban Regional Court this week to face various theft related charges, including the abduction of Henry.
The matter has been adjourned to next month.
The pair and a third suspect, who is still at large, were allegedly spotted attempting to break into an off-duty policeman’s vehicle in the uMdloti area on October 26, but fled in a red Toyota Etios when they were disturbed.
They were noticed again, according to Tyron Powell, spokesperson for Marshall security, by their personnel on Lighthouse Road in uMhlanga that same morning and sped off again.
Shandu, who allegedly drove the vehicle, lost control and crashed near a BP Garage in the area.
They attempted to flee on foot but were apprehended by the security officers at the crash scene.
Powell said they were surprised to find Henry jammed in the boot of the car, which landed on its roof after the crash.
They called snake handler Jason Arnold to retrieve the bird before it was handed to Sarah Keyser, founder of Broken Wings, a non-profit organisation specialising in animal rescues.
“I’ve never known of a peacock being stolen before. I was surprised that it happened.”
Keyser said when she received the animal it was “quite shocked”.
“He was hungry and thirsty and ate and drank well. Apart from a few broken tail feathers, he was fine and we were able to reunite the bird with its owners the same day,” said Keyser.
At the time, neighbours on the street where Henry lived, expressed their shock at him being bird-napped and told of what a “spoilt bird” he was.
They said Henry had become the neighbourhood celebrity. They would feed him, loved the sounds he made and obliged when passers-by stopped to photograph him.
On Friday his owner, who asked not to be named, confirmed the bird was missing again.
The owner said it was jubilation when Henry was retrieved in October after they learnt about its abduction from a neighbour, but that joy has since turned to heartbreak after their pet’s recent disappearance.
“It is such a beautiful bird. I think people are desperate to steal it for its feathers.”
Sun, 23 May 2021 10:33:28 GMTMervyn Naidoo
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