Social media sites have been rammed with confusion after police released blurred images of victims of crime - who happened to be sheep.

英国警方公布了一组打了马赛克的犯罪受害者照片，大家在社交网站上纷纷表示疑惑不解，因为受害者居然是绵羊。

The lambs' identity was "protected due to their age and vulnerability", West Midlands Police said.

西米德兰兹郡的警方称，绵羊的身份“因其未成年，易受伤害而受到保护。”

The woolly passengers were spotted after they were herded into the back of a car and driven around by suspected rustlers.

偷羊嫌犯把羊圈在车厢后部，开着车到处走，随后引起警方注意，在车里发现了几只羊。

But the subsequent image circulated by the force turned out to be a joke.

但是随后警方发布的照片成了一个笑话。

Nic Barlow commented on Facebook: "I wondered why the picture looked a bit woolly."

尼克•巴罗在脸书上说：“我想知道为什么这照片看上去有点毛乎乎的。”

Abbas Zen said: "It would be an animal rights issue if they didn't [blur the images]."

阿巴斯•泽恩说：“如果他们没打码就成了侵害动物权利问题。”

Other people were less amused by the force's sense of fun.

其他人不觉得警察的幽默感有多好笑。

"Police show criminal sense of humour as they release pictures of stolen sheep with pixelated faces," tweeted Solene Deplanche.

索林•德普朗奇发推称，“警察给偷来的羊脸上打码，显示了对犯罪案件的幽默感。”

Officers said three suspected sheep rustlers found in the car near Hob Moor Road, Yardley in Birmingham were rounded up in nearby gardens - with one up a tree and another penned in a conservatory.

警方说他们在伯明翰亚德利霍布摩尔路附近发现了三个偷羊嫌疑犯，被困在附近的花园里，其中一个嫌疑犯爬到了树上，一个躲在温室里。

The men aged 22, 27, and 28, were arrested on suspicion of theft, while police traced owners of the sheep.

这三个人分别为22岁、27岁、28岁，以偷盗嫌疑被逮捕，警察在找羊主人。

Jokes aside, officers said the lambs were unhurt and have been temporarily re-homed on a farm in Sheldon.

抛开玩笑不说，警察称绵羊们都没受到伤害，暂时被安置在谢尔登的一个农场。

Analysis: A sheepish decision?

分析：这是一个羞怯的决定吗？

British police have guidelines over what information they reveal about victims of crime - but was there a bit of woolly thinking in the West Midlands force after journalists were given an image obscuring the faces of allegedly-rustled lambs?

英国警方对犯罪受害者的信息披露有规定——但是记者们在拿到所谓的被偷的羊的打码照片时就没有想想西米德兰兹郡警方为什么会这样做吗？

The Data Protection Act and Article 8 of the Human Rights Act, which covers family and private life, require the police to protect personal information unless there is a good reason to release it.

《数据保护法案》和《人权法案》第8条涉及到家庭和私生活，要求警察保护个人信息，除非有恰当的理由才能公开。

My mint sources tell me that an officer in the case blurred the image as a joke.

我打探到的消息称，此案的一个警察为开玩笑给照片打了码。

He presumably concluded he had an obligation under the Ewe-ropean Convention on Eweman Rights to hide the poor little lambs' faces.

他可能断定，根据《欧洲羊权公约》，自己有责任去隐藏可怜小羊的脸。