Horses slaughtered for meat

Since January, the remains of 17 horses have been found in Miami-Dade County, slaughtered and abandoned on or near rural roads. In May, two horses -- their throats cut and flesh stripped from their legs -- were found in a field in Miramar in Broward County.

"The majority of the found carcasses exhibit signs that the horses were butchered and meat removed," said Capt. Scott Andress, commander of Miami-Dade police department's Agricultural Patrol Section, one of the agencies investigating the incidents.

Police believe the killers carrying out these malicious acts are motivated by money. While it is legal for a person to slaughter his or her own horse and eat the meat, it is illegal to sell horse meat in Florida, police said.

"We've received anecdotal information from horse and livestock owners that there's a black market demand," Andress said. "We're attempting to confirm that such a market exists and, if so, to what extent."

The gruesome discoveries have been in the northwest and southwest portion of Miami-Dade. Police are tracking several leads and have developed a number of theories, said Andress, who declined to discuss the specific theories because of the ongoing investigation.

(Via Miami Herald)