PETA OFFERS UP TO $5,000 REWARD TO CATCH ANIMAL KILLER
Group Hopes to Bring Person or Persons Responsible for Appalling Cruelty to Justice
For Immediate Release:
12 August 2015
Melbourne – A red deer named Karl was savagely killed in Myrtleford in northeastern Victoria last week. Manfred and Narelle Wagner, who raised the deer from a fawn, described Karl as being part of the family and spoke of how he ate oats, bread, potato chips and apples from their hands. Karl was 10 years old and had a magnificent set of antlers, which could be worth up to $20,000 as a trophy. Police believe that the person or persons responsible for this crime waited for the Wagners to go away before killing Karl and cutting off his head.
Police are looking into this barbaric crime, but no suspects have been identified. They state that the hunting community is tight-knit and unlikely to assist. To supplement the $1,000 reward offered by the Wagners, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) Australia is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to the identification and conviction of those responsible for this cruel act.
“It’s imperative that any community faced with a violent act such as the decapitation of Karl take measures to find the culprit or culprits and bring them to justice”, says PETA Australia Director of Campaigns Jason Baker. “Animal abusers are a danger to everyone – they take their issues out on whoever is available to them, human or non-human, and must be caught before they act again. We’re appealing to anyone with information about those responsible for this cruel act to come forward now so that the perpetrator or perpetrators can be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
Cruelty to animals carries a penalty of more than $35,000 or 12 months imprisonment under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986. Anyone with information about this case is encouraged to call the Myrtleford Police Station on (03) 5752 1003.
For more information about cruelty to animals, please visit PETA.org.au.
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