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Horse killings continue in South Florida

Posted: Thursday, September 10, 2009 9:42 AM

by Ed DeRosa

A series of macabre incidents involving the slaughter of 21 horses this year in South Florida took another peculiar twist Wednesday when the Miami Herald published a story from one of the supposed victims that misidentifies one of the killed horses.

Reporter Jennifer Lebovich, who is now on vacation until September 15 and unavailable for comment, printed comments from Yosmel Luis saying that one of the deceased horses is named Kin Kisi and raced at Calder Race Course.

Calder has no record of a horse named Kin Kisi ever racing at its facility. The Jockey Club also has never even registered a Thoroughbred with such a name. Similarly, there is no record of a Yosmel Luis running horses at the Miami area track. The Herald reports that Luis bought Kin Kisi with his brother, Yoel, to race.

“I talked to the editor of the Herald [on Wednesday] and explained that no horse with that name has ever raced at Calder. Something’s not right,” said Michele Blanco, Calder’s director of communications. “I’m not trying to stir up a conspiracy or anything like that, but we need to get the facts out there if we’re going to track down who’s doing this.”

The Herald published a picture of Kin Kisi on its website. The caption to the picture refers to Luis as 22 years old, but the accompanying article lists his age as 28.

Miami Gardens Police Sergeant Bill Bamford said Thursday that the perpetrator slit Kin Kisi’s throat and removed his front legs and intestines. The manner of Kin Kisi’s death is consistent with the other horse death cases this year.

“We don’t have something to link it all together, but there is a similar pattern where people are going into pastures and stable areas in the early morning hours, slitting the horse’s throat and removing the legs,” Bamford said. “It’s just so sad because these are beautiful horses.

“Speaking to Cuban residents in the area, horse meat is a delicacy, so we don’t know if this is a black market taking over and selling the meat or what.”

Bamford said that the perpetrator of these crimes would face a number of charges, including likely animal cruelty and the illegal harvesting of meat without a license.

“Animal cruelty is the most serious of the crimes,” Bamford said.

Blanco said that Calder is committed to putting an end to this crime spree and that the track, its owner Churchill Downs Inc., and local animal welfare organizations are hoping to raise $10,000 to offer as a reward for information leading to a conviction in this case. People with information should call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at (305)471-TIPS.

Ed DeRosa is news editor of Thoroughbred Times