Latvian thieves milk stolen cows

RIGA, Latvia (AP) -- After stealing seven cows from a farm near the Latvian town of Ogre, thieves ditched three of them in a nearby barn, but not before milking them for all they were worth -- literally -- a police detective said Tuesday.

Thieves stole the seven cows on Sunday as they were grazing in a herd of about 150 cattle near a farm near Ogre, 21 miles (34 kilometers) southeast of the capital, Riga, State Police Detective Maris Rozans, told The Associated Press Tuesday.

The farm's owners first thought the seven cows had simply wandered off, but after finding three of them tied by their horns in an abandoned barn about 1.2 miles (2 kilometers) away, it was obvious a theft had occurred, Rozans said.

Before ditching the three cows, which sell locally for about $400 apiece, the thieves milked them, Rozans said.

"The people who care for the cows determined that the cows had been milked," said Rozans.

"I think the cows were milked so that they wouldn't make noise, because if they hadn't been milked, they might have made a ruckus."

Rozans said he didn't know what the thieves had done with the milk but that it was unlikely they would have tried to sell it.

He said the other four cows were probably sold by the thieves and were butchered.

Police have no suspects in the case yet, said Rozans.