Shergar quickly'"; another shareholder, Lord Derby, disagreed and said "if ransom money is paid for this horse, then there is a danger of other horses being kidnapped in the years to come – and that simply cannot be tolerated". The first phone call from the thieves was on the night Shergar was stolen; Fitzgerald was not back at Ballymany by that time, and had not had the chance to tell the news of the theft to anyone. The call was to Jeremy Maxwell, a horse trainer based in Northern Ireland. The caller demanded £40,000, although this figure was later raised to
Stolen Horse International and recovery of horses. Many thieves have been apprehended after the group has assisted with the recovery of stolen horses. The work performed by Stolen Horse International, Inc., is done by thousands of volunteers which receive and distribute fliers, usually sent electronically via e-mail or fax. Their electronic mailing list, titled the NetPosse Alert Network, can be accessed freely by anyone with Internet access. Because the group is a non-profit, volunteer work is important since their funding is limited. Stolen Horse International, Inc.,was founded by Debi Metcalfe with the help of her husband Harold. Harold's mare, Idaho, was stolen September