Police chase after water buffalo near Des Moines recorded by bodycam
A police bodycam captures Iowa officers attempting to capture a stray water buffalo near Des Moines.
The owner of a runaway water buffalo that evaded capture for five days already has a history with escaped animals: According to court records, at least six goats and cows were found running away in the neighborhoods around Pleasant Hill.
Police identified the owner in the body camera footage as Prem Nepal of Des Moines. According to Axios, he leases the land north of Pleasant Hill from which the water buffalo, nicknamed PHill, escaped.
PHill was last seen Saturday after escaping slaughter, surviving a gunshot wound and leading police on a five-day hunt for the animal. He was tranquilized and taken to Iowa State University’s Large Animal Hospital Wednesday morning.
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Nepal’s most recent cattle-police clash occurred in September 2020, when a Pleasant Hill police officer responded to a call about a “rogue” cow at East University Avenue and Northeast 56th Street, according to a court document.
During that incident, officials called Nepal several times but were unable to bring him to their location, the court document states.
Officers feared that the black cow would become a safety hazard at sunset because it would no longer be visible to motorists, the document states. Officers shot the cow four times, killing it.
Pleasant Hill had previously responded to loose animals in the area six times, the document states. In each case, Nepal was found to be the owner of the animals.
Nepal pleaded guilty to failure to keep an animal on a leash and paid a $105 fine for the incident.
A few days later, the same official was asked again whether Nepal had disposed of the cow’s carcass, the court document says.
“I noticed a pile of dirt partially covering part of the carcass,” the officer said in the report. “I went over and found that Prem had neither taken the carcass nor removed it. The carcass was still lying where it had been left on private property.”
Nepal pleaded guilty to failing to dispose of a dead animal and paid a fine of $105.
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In December 2016, Nepal pleaded guilty to keeping an animal at large and paid a $100 fine after his goats were found roaming freely within Pleasant Hill city limits, court records show.
In the recent incident involving PHill, officials told Nepal based on body camera footage that he could be charged or held liable if anything happens to the escaped water buffalo. City spokeswoman Candace Bell said the investigation into the water buffalo escape is ongoing and charges could be filed.
Nepal declined to comment when contacted by the Register.
After treatment, PHill will be placed in the care of the Iowa Farm Sanctuary, an Oxford-based nonprofit that rescues farm animals, which has applied for custody of two other water buffalo on Nepalese property.
José Mendiola is a breaking news reporter for the Register. Reach him at [email protected].
