Police officials are on the hunt for whoever has shot and killed more than 42 donkeys in the Mojave Desert over the last three months.
The staggering number of dead donkeys found at the California-Nevada border has clearly puzzled officials of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
Their carcasses were found in various states of decomposition on a freeway corridor through the Clark Mountain Herd Area.
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One was even found alive before succumbing to its injuries, Nada DeMayo, president of the nonprofit Return to Freedom, told the Los Angeles Times.
Federal officials are offering up to US$18,000 for anyone who can provide tips that help nab the suspect or suspects.
“We will pursue every lead until we’ve arrested and prosecuted those responsible for these cruel, savage deaths, and we welcome the public’s help to bring the perpetrator or perpetrators to justice,” BLM deputy director for policy and programs William Perry Pendley told News Channel 3.
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The Clark Mountain Herd Area is federally protected under the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971, which states they are “living symbols of the historic and pioneer spirit of the West.”
The act protects the herds in 10 western states and is controlled by the Department of the Interior or the US Forest Services.
BLM officials spoke to the Los Angeles Times about the crime, saying that it’s likely they were killed while drinking water from a nearby spring. Many, they said, were juvenile donkeys.
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“It’s a travesty that these animals would be gunned down,” Grace Kuhn, spokeswoman for the nonprofit American Wild Horse Campaign, said. “There’ve been isolated incidents before over the years, but nothing on this scale in memory.”
By Monday, no suspects had been found yet, BLM spokesperson Sarah Webster told the broadcast station.
Violation of the act — which includes harassing, branding or killing an animal — could result in a fine of up to US$2,000 or a one-year prison sentence, or both.
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