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Bags of beheaded birds found in Lake Avondale
Neighbors were upset to hear that someone had cut off the heads of several birds and left them floating in the water of Avondale Lake. A resident discovered the birds on Saturday.
AVONDALE ESTATES, Ga. - A resident in the Avondale Estates area made a gruesome discovery over the weekend.
What we know:
Neighbors were upset to hear that someone had cut off the heads of several birds and left them floating in the water of Avondale Lake.
Patrick Bryant, city manager of Avondale Estates, confirms that a resident discovered two bags of beheaded birds in the lake on Sunday afternoon.
"They were floating in the lake," Bryant said. "They found a garbage sack that contained bird carcasses and what appeared to be old feed. My understanding is that it was chickens and perhaps a singular duck included with the chickens."
Deanna Cauthen calls the park a place of refuge and safety. She wonders why anyone would do something so awful.
"Hearing that is pretty disturbing and scary," Cauthen said. "I’ve been coming here for about 25 years. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of anything that disturbing in all the years I’ve been here. Out of all the things you could do, why do that? Obviously, that’s not something that just happened; somebody deliberately did that."
What we don't know:
Who did it, how the carcasses ended up there, and why are still mysteries.
It is not clear if the birds were pets or wild. Bryant says he’s never heard of anything like this in his city. "Hopefully, we don’t encounter this again."
What they're saying:
Andre Sifford loves to visit the lake at the end of the day. He was disturbed to hear of the grisly discovery. "It’s devastating that someone would treat a defenseless bird in that manner," Sifford said.
Nita Mason loves visiting the park because she feels safe there. She wonders why anyone would do this. "I don’t even understand the point," Mason said. "There’s a lot of sick people out there right now."
"That’s the kind of stuff that makes you wonder and makes you scared because you don’t know what that’s about. If they’ve done that, what else are they going to do?" Cauthen asked.
DeKalb County Animal Control picked up the remains. A spokesperson says it appears someone recently dumped the carcasses.
Bryant said it does not appear any crimes were committed beyond littering. Bryant also said, "Though unfortunate, unless this becomes a recurring thing, our investigation in this matter is over."
The Source: This is a FOX 5 original report where Christopher King spoke with Patrick Bryant, city manager of Avondale Estates and neighbors who learned of the discovery.