Gardaí probe ritual sacrifice of dog in remote woods

GARDAÍ and animal welfare officers are investigating the ritual sacrifice of a dog in an apparent cult killing at woods used for school tours.

The border collie was found with its head smashed and throat cut, laid out on a large altar made of cement and stones and surrounded by a circle of stones, some of which were carved with crosses.

Hikers made the grisly finding in a remote part of Knocksink Woods in Enniskerry, Co Wicklow, which are home to the National Environmental Education Centre and are popular with school trips.

The site was far from the designated walking trails and is believed to have been used for some years for similar activities without anyone discovering its existence until now.

President of the Co Wicklow branch of the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Noel Campbell, said the discovery was sickening.

“We are quite horrified at this whole thing. We got a call about it last Friday and managed to verify with the gardaí that an incident had been reported but we only found the place this morning,” he said yesterday.

“It’s quite a climb to get to it and you have to go through rough ground but once you get there, the site has been well cleared. There is a very large stone circle and in the centre we found an altar had been built.

“We believe the site has been there for quite some time because the stones have become embedded in the ground and are covered in moss. There are engravings of crosses and what appears to be two smaller stone circles.”

Blood and animal hair was still evident at the scene despite gardaí removing the remains of the collie for a post-mortem examination. The altar has been broken up to prevent it being used again and a priest performed a blessing at the spot.

Gardaí are taking the incident seriously as the evidence points to an organised adult group being responsible rather than it being the random act of teenagers experimenting with cult-like activities.

The stones and cement used would have been too heavy for individuals to carry and it is suspected an off-road vehicle would have had to transport them via adjacent farmland.

It is thought the pet dog was slain up to a fortnight ago at the height of the summer holiday season when many families would have been visiting the area. Knocksink is regarded as a valuable nature reserve and is cared for by the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

The National Environmental Education Centre was established there in the 1990s and regularly runs environmental courses and encourages trips by schools and scout groups.

Garda patrols have been stepped up in the area. A garda spokesman confirmed that an “incident of animal cruelty” was being investigated but had no further comment to make.