Dismembered animals in ‘sacrifice ritual’ discovered when cops raid home
Dead and dismembered goats, chickens and other animals were found in a San Antonio-area home Friday night after police responded to calls of a suspected animal sacrifice ritual, authorities said.
At least a dozen people were arrested and charged with animal cruelty, the San Antonio Express-News reported.
“There’s a misunderstanding but we’re not going to talk about it,” a woman at the home told Fox 29 San Antonio.
Bexar County sheriff’s deputies found the group inside a garage where a woman was cutting up animal parts and another person was draining the blood of a chicken into a container, Sgt. Elizabeth Gonzalez said.
“It appears that they were having some sort of unknown ritual,” Gonzalez said.
Officers found 11 of the suspects gathered in a circle, officials told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
Deputies additionally found multiple dead and mutilated animals in the residence, including goats and chickens.
As many as 14 people, men and women ages 23 to 65, were arrested and will face misdemeanor charges of cruelty to non-livestock animals, authorities said. The offense is a Class A misdemeanor, unless it is enhanced because of previous related offenses, they said.
Bexar County Animal Control Services removed several live animals from the scene, the report said.
Authorities identified 11 of the suspects: Alexander Gene Campos, 23; Ivan Felipe Gonzalez, 24; Carmen Maria Gonzalez-Trujillo, 41; Cynthia Gabriell Martinez, 29; Liza Mercado, 46; Marie Galan Murcia, 65; Ramon Patino Jr., 65; Luiz Rodriguez Ortiz, 41; Robert Talamantez, 55; Irma Garza Talamantez, 64; and Arteaga Ariel Torres, 39.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.