Police will be increasing patrols around farmland in the Catlins area near the Otago/Southland border after two hoggets were stolen from a property over the weekend.
Police would like to hear from people hunting in the area last weekend who may have seen suspicious vehicles.
Senior Constable Murray Hewitson, of Owaka, said the farmer was in the area on Saturday afternoon, and there was no issue.
When he visited the same area on Sunday afternoon, he discovered two hoggets had been shot, skinned and gutted, and the carcasses removed.
"It looks like they [the offenders] worked in a freezing works, or knew what they were doing," he said.
"We are not getting at genuine hunters, but these guys are giving them a bad name."
Poaching in this area is an "ongoing problem" and police would be increasing patrols, Snr Const Hewitson said.
