Horse beaten, shot and left on Sylmar street, authorities say

SYLMAR (FOX 11) - The Los Angeles Police Department's Animal Cruelty Task Force was investigating the death of horse whose carcass was found beaten and shot in the middle of a public street near Sylmar in the San Fernando Valley.

The dead animal was found about 10:30 a.m. Saturday laying in the 11700 block of Kagel Canyon Road, according to Detective Eric Bixler of the LAPD's Foothill Division.

"Sometime between midnight and 7 a.m., someone beat and/or killed a horse and left it with its tail tied to a telephone pole with a rope,'' Bixler said. "This was done intentionally and maliciously. "It's very strange, this whole thing.''

The animal was transported to San Bernardino, where a necropsy was to be conducted to determine the exact cause of death, Bixler said. Investigators have already determined, however, that the animal was badly beaten and suffered multiple gunshot wounds.

"The horse has been cleared out from the scene, where there was evidence left -- we believe we will be able to identify who did this,'' Bixler said, while asking that anyone with information about the crime to call police.

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