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Police are on the lookout for suspects after a woman in Ipoh, Perak found nine dead dogs believed to have been poisoned to death last Thursday, 24 December
According to Harian Metro, Ipoh district deputy police chief Supt Mohamad Nordin Abdullah said the woman, who lives around the area, first found two dead stray dogs near a factory in Puncak Jelapang around 10pm on Christmas Eve.
The next day, she discovered seven more bodies in the area, laying still on the streets with blood oozing out of their mouths.
The witness told the police that she also saw five men hanging about the area just before her discovery
“The woman then came forward to lodge a police report for fear of personal safety,” said Mohamad Nordin.
The deputy police chief said preliminary investigations do not rule out the possibility that the animals died by poisoning and the case is being investigated under Section 428 of the Penal Code for committing mischief by killing or maiming an animal.
The Star reported this was the most recent in a series of similar cases that has seen over 50 stray dogs killed in the past three weeks around the city.
Local animal welfare groups interviewed by the English daily believe that perpetrators have been feeding the dogs chicken heads laced with poison after finding evidence at the crime scenes.
Animal welfare group Stray Animal Feeders of Malaysia (SAFM) has called on anyone with information about the poisoning incidents to come forward to assist with the investigation
In a Facebook post, they condemned the cruel acts and advocated neutering the stray population, instead of culling them.
“SAFM has reminded the public multiple times that poisoning stray animals will not solve their neighbourhood stray problems,” the group wrote.
“We condemn the irresponsible actions of this group of individuals and we will strive to uphold justice for these dogs.”