The worrying multiplication of mysterious acts of barbarism against horses

Extension of the area of ​​the wild. Two horses have been found mutilated since Friday, in different regions of France, confirming a worrying wave of animal cruelty nationwide. A spokesperson for the National Police had identified last Tuesday a dozen similar cases since the beginning of the year, initially in the North, mainly in isolated meadows. Free barbarism? Witchcraft? The public authorities remain at the stage of conjecture for the moment.

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The skinned ear

Died of natural causes on Friday, the last horse concerned was stored in a meadow in Sainte-Colombe-sur-Gand, in the north of the Loire, with a view to being sent to rendering. Monday morning, his owner discovered that he had been mutilated overnight, with an ear cut, one eye removed and his nose cut off, according to the same source confirming information from the regional daily Le Progrès .

Read also: New case of a mutilated horse, this time in the Loire

Warned of this post mortem sample, the Loire gendarmerie opened an investigation for " theft and concealment of animal organs " in an attempt to identify the perpetrator (s). " The gendarmes have made the connection between this case and fifteen cases of mysterious acts of torture and mutilation of living horses across France in recent weeks, " the Roanne prosecutor's office told AFP. Investigations that benefit from the support of the Central Office for the Fight against Attacks on the Environment and Public Health (OCLAESP), in support of the local brigades, which will also follow the evolution of the Loire affair, specifies are we on the side of the investigators.

An investigation of flagrance was also opened after the discovery of a mare, found dead and mutilated on Friday in Thoiria, in the Jura, to search for the perpetrator (s) and possible links with similar cases recently reported across France. , we learned from the gendarmerie yesterday Monday. The aggressor (s) removed an eye and a chestnut from the animal, an outgrowth formed by the horn and located on the legs of the horses, details France Bleu Besançon.

Read also: Jura: an investigation opened after the mutilation of a mare

The investigation was opened for " serious abuse or acts of cruelty towards a tamed or captive domestic animal ", the national gendarmerie of Lons-le-Saunier told AFP. " In the state of the investigation, nothing directly connects what happened in the Jura to national facts ", however noted the gendarmerie, which again works in collaboration with the Central Office for the fight against attacks on environment and public health. The gendarmerie plans to publish on Facebook " recommendations vis-à-vis breeders and equestrian centers " and call for vigilance.

This would be the second case in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in less than a week. On August 8, breeders from Saône-et-Loire found one of their fillies dead, mutilated, in the village of Cortambert. The right ear as well as the genitals had been cut off, and one eye removed. The current wave began in January, when a former racing trotter, Démon du Médoc , was found dead with his ear severed. Later, it is a pony which knew the same fate in Saint-Germain-lès-Arpajon (Essonne). Other macabre discoveries have been recorded, in the Puy-de-Dôme, the Somme ... A 14-year-old donkey was also found dead, an eye torn out, in a pasture of Grumesnil, in Seine-Maritime.

Police do not " understand " the motives of criminals

Cases of barbarism of this type were recorded between 2014 and 2016. Similar practices have also been recorded in the past in Belgium and Germany. But the numbers seem to be getting out of hand with an unprecedented upsurge in recent months. “ We don't understand the motives. Is it a satanic rite, insurance fraud, the search for macabre trophies, or an internet challenge? We do not know. It is all very traumatic, ”the police spokesperson said last week. The national police said to assist and coordinate the local branches in their investigations. France has also reportedly sent alerts to other European countries.