Betrayed by a drop of blood. In the investigation into horse mutilation in Normandy, a man in his twenties was arrested at the start of the week thanks to a DNA trace found on the scene of one of his packages. He is suspected of having seriously killed and injured several horses in the region in recent weeks. The public prosecutor established her profile during a press conference this Thursday.
A man deemed to brawler
The young man is described by investigators as well as well inserted socially. He is not a rider and we know no interest in horse riding. However, a detail challenges investigators: her girlfriend herself owns horses. The young man would have killed one of his equines. Hearing by the investigators, the latter described him as a brawler, and he is actually known to justice for acts of violence when he was younger.
Investigators have identified seven non -natural events in which human intervention is indisputable. Each time, the animals have been found with their eyes shunned, the body deeply lacerated and the bones fractured or crushed by blunt objects. Of the fifteen horses concerned, 10 were seriously injured, and five died.
An impressive arsenal
The case took a decisive turning point on August 1: human blood is found on one of the wounded horses during the night. The sample was urgently analyzed and led to the identification of the suspect who was arrested on August 4.
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In his car, the investigators discovered several weapons, including some blood macubs: clawing key, cutter, winder … A monocular that allows you to see at night, as well as horses for horses, were also found. At the time of the arrest, the young man had a wound on his hand, whom he claims to have done at work.
During his police custody, he recognized his presence on the scene of two of the seven facts, the night of August 31 in the town of Saint-Martin-du-Manoir, and that of June 26 in Saint-Vaast-Diepedalle, but he denied the other facts. The young man explained that he “obeyed impulses”. A first psychiatric expertise was carried out during police custody. The expert noted a probable alteration of discernment during the facts, but he asked for a second expertise.
Tried in September
The prosecution confirmed the opening of an investigation for “serious abuses and acts of cruelty which led to death on horses” and for “serious abuse and acts of cruelty on horses”. These crimes are liable to five years of maximum imprisonment. The suspect was placed in pre -trial detention on Wednesday evening and will appear in court on September 26, 2025.
In the meantime, the Normandy Chamber of Agriculture supports horses owners to keep them informed and help them take animal surveillance and protection measures.
