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Horse found slaughtered on South Florida roadside
2 November, 2009
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Another horse has been found slaughtered in South Florida. It is the 21st killing of its type this year
The remains of a bay thoroughbred horse were found by riders on Saturday (31 October) on a roadside in Homestead.
The thoroughbred mare is believed by investigators to have been around three or four years old.
The horse's back legs were missing and its organs were found nearby in rubbish bags.
A Society of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) investigator said the horse appeared to have been butchered elsewhere and then dumped on the roadside.
This is the latest in a spate of horse slaughters in the area. Police believe the horses are being killed for their meat, which can be sold for up to $40 a pound on the black market.
"It was a typical slaughter," Richard Couto, from the SPCA told local press. "This was done by pros."
Over the past couple of months four men have been arrested in connection to the killings.
Last month ranch owner Roberto Aguedo Chavez, 53, and worker Ricardo Olivarez, 45, were arrested after selling illegal horse meat to an undercover policeman.
But police are saying this latest incident is unconnected to any previous arrests.
"There are so many people doing this," Mr Couto told the Miami Herald. "It is profitable and there is a high demand, and the problem is not going away soon.
"It was a pretty brutal scene. I love horses, and going to a scene like that and seeing one in 10 to 15 pieces, it's difficult.'
"South Florida is probably one of the only places in the United States that a dead horse is much more valuable than a live horse."
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