The $200,000 champion Grand Prix show-horse shown below was led from its “unlocked” stall this weekend, then cruelly slaughtered and “filleted” close by, Florida officials are saying.
Unknown butchers of the handsome 12-year-old prize-winning chestnut left only his head and ribcage at the crime scene in Manatee County … and “a lot of blood.”
Just weeks before the gruesome murder, the internationally-renown competitor had finished second in France’s prestigious Grand Prix Le Pin jump event, and was expected to match or best that performance on the American circuit.
Investigators said there was evidence that 1300-pound Phedras de Blondel struggled to defend himself and escape the fatal knife attack Sunday night.
That has them convinced more than one suspect was involved in the stealthy theft and slaying of the star jumper, allegedly “for the horsemeat.”
Black-market slaughter of well-fed and pampered equines has been on the rise in recent years, especially in Florida which has seen an influx of immigrant populations that consider such horsemeat a delicacy.
Phedras, a gelding, was undoubtedly targeted by the horse thieves because, being castrated, he had a gentler disposition than a stallion and was certainly more plump.
Sources have hinted at the likelihood that the brutal and brazen crime was, partly, an inside job.
@EponymousRox
Animal Cruelty
