‘Kentucky horse killer’ hunted by police as six more bodies found after massacre

Discovery brings death toll to 20 horses in mysterious mass shooting

Six more horses have been found fatally shot in Kentucky, according to authorities, as the search continues for the person or people responsible for the massacre.

Dumas Rescue, a local animal rescue group, has offered a $20,000 (£15,450) reward for information on the shootings as the total number of dead horses has risen to 20.

The dead animals range from foals to full grown horses, some of which were pregnant, and all of the horses appear to have been shot, according to local police.

John Hunt, the sheriff of Floyd County, has described the scene of the shootings as looking “like a battlefield for just horses”.

Tonya Conn, from Dumas Rescue, said the dead horses were scattered over a large area and it appears they were hunted.

The animal rescue group added that it does not believe the six recently discovered horses are victims of a new shooting and were in fact not found in an earlier search.

“I cannot put into words how heartbroken and disgusted I am, knowing the person(s) responsible for this massacre [are] still at large,” a Dumas Rescue spokesperson wrote in a Facebook post announcing the six deaths.

“They [the horses] deserve justice and someone out there knows who did this.”

A group of free-roaming horses were found dead in Kentucky last week, triggering a police investigation.

Officials in Lexington, Kentucky, began an autopsy on one of the foals on Monday and hope to find bullet fragments that could assist attempts to find the culprit.

It appears that the horses were shot with a low-calibre weapon.

Authorities have said whoever is responsible is likely to face animal cruelty charges at a minimum for the killings.

“It has been heartbreaking seeing these beautiful horses killed but it had equally been heartwarming to see all the concerns and see all the support in assisting in the investigation and to give the living horses a good home,” Floyd County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement last week.

Additional reporting by AP