Police are investigating after multiple horses that were stolen were found slaughtered in southwest Miami-Dade Friday.
The horses were found in a rural area near Southwest 124th Avenue and Southwest 197th Avenue after they'd been stolen from a farm overnight, Miami-Dade Police officials said.
Aerial footage from Chopper 6 showed the remains of the three horses off a trail in a grassy area.
One horse, named Paloma, had been a therapy horse that visited schools to help kids and others with mental health issues.
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"When something like this happens, it brings back all of those memories from all of those kids who were able to enjoy the animal," said Paloma's owner, David Yepez. "We were able to improve some of their lives because of it."
Police said they believe the horses were taken to the area where they were slaughtered and then harvested for their meat.
"It is not safe for human consumption simply because of the fact that the medication they give the horses in order to remain healthy and the substance they have to ingest to remain healthy throughout," Miami-Dade Police Det. Alvaro Zabaleta said. "Their lives are not human consumption."