In New York, authorities are on the lookout for individuals involved in a disturbing act of decapitating chickens, a dove, and a rooster, leaving their remains at cemeteries as part of what appears to be a “ritualistic sacrifice.”
The Suffolk County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) is actively investigating these incidents, as outlined in a recent Facebook post. The most recent occurrence took place at Union Cemetery in Middle Island, where a man walking his dog discovered a bag containing a beheaded chicken, coconut chunks, fruits, vegetables, candle remnants, and the skeletal remains of a goat head.
The SPCA detectives, in their investigation, revealed that these findings align with the practice of animal sacrifice, involving the killing and offering of animals as part of a religious ritual.
A similar discovery, characterized as a “grisly” ritualistic sacrifice, was made at the same cemetery on Oct. 17, involving the remains of a decapitated chicken, black rooster, and white dove arranged in a circular pattern. In August, two beheaded chickens were found in front of a cemetery in Coram.
To aid in the apprehension of those responsible, the Suffolk SPCA is offering a $2,000 reward. Misdemeanor animal abuse, the charge these individuals could face, carries a potential year in jail and a $1,000 fine per offense. Chief Roy Gross of the Suffolk SPCA emphasized the brutality of the acts, noting the use of knives, often dull, to inflict extreme harm, indicating a barbaric and torturous nature.
