Horses next to the Rio Grande river
© HeavyHorses are seen next to the Rio Grande river in January.
Law enforcement officials in Texas are warning about a possible serial horse killer in Pearland. Five horses have been found slaughtered and officials are concerned this may be at the hands of the same person. Pearland is located within the Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land metropolitan area, mostly in Brazoria County. (The photo above is of horses in Texas in January; they are not connected with the Pearland cases.)

Here's what you need to know.

In a post shared on Facebook, the Pearland Police Department warned about a possible serial horse killer after discovering five horses slaughtered since May. The most recent horses were discovered on August 8. Police have said that the killings might be the result of a serial horse killer, ABC 13 reported.

The Most Recent Horses Were Found on August 8 on Hooper Road

The police shared that two horses found August 8 on the 14000 block of Hooper Road. This was the most recent gruesome discovery.

The horses' owner arrived at her property and learned that her horses were missing and part of her fence had been cut. The horses were found dead and butchered about half a mile away, Pearland Police shared. The police said that their "backstraps and hindquarters" were removed.

A Horse Was Discovered June 10 on Kirby Drive

On June 10, Pearland officials found a killed and butchered horse on the 14000 block of Kirby Drive. The horse had been fatally stabbed in the chest and then was butchered after it died, police said. The horse's backstraps, front and hindquarters were then removed, and police believe it may have been killed for its meat.

Tyler Bockel told Fox 26 that he had gone to the property his grandfather owned to feed his family's horses, Goldie and Sugar. He said Sugar was alive, but he found Goldie dead and butchered. Police said they had never seen something like that before. The owner's fence had been cut to get at the horse.

Another Horse Was Killed on May 22 & a Fifth on June 29

According to officials, another horse was killed on May 22 outside of the Pearland jurisdiction. A fifth horse was killed on June 29, also outside of the city limits. Both were found along the Sam Houston Toll Road (Beltway 8), police said.

Similar Cases Were Reported in February in Florida

Texas isn't the only state that has encountered horse butchering crimes recently. In late February, a family in Florida found their horse butchered in the Naples region, NBC News reported. They had the horse, Whip, for eight years. Investigators in other counties had said similar crimes were happening there too.

Butcherings were also reported in Florida in late 2019 and early 2020, TampaBay.com reported. Brena Kramer, who owns a horse rehabilitation center, said she found signs of an attempt to kill her horses on her property. TampaBay reported that the first horse was found dead on Thanksgiving Day, then four days later someone stole a horse from a locked gate on a farm. More and more horse owners shared frightening stories on Facebook of fences cut and attempts on their horses.

If you have any information, contact the Pearland Police Detective J. Page at 281.997.4202 or email JPage@PearlandTx.Gov.