Police Investigate Intentional Killing of Horse Found with Barbed Wire

A deceased horse was discovered with barbed wire secured around its front and hind legs, an incident authorities suspect to be an intentional killing. Julie Jackson, 58, a resident of Newport, expressed that her “soul had been ripped out” following the finding of Skye, a horse she had owned for three decades, in a water-filled ditch. According to Gwent Police, two ponies, also injured and with barbed wire on their legs, were located next to Skye in a farmer’s field. This field is situated adjacent to the Marshfield paddock near Wentlooge, the location where the animals were housed. Mrs. Jackson stated that a gate connecting the two properties, which had been secured with wire for years, was cut open. This led her initially to believe her horses had been stolen. She remarked, “My horses are very clever, but there is no way they could’ve cut the barbed wire fence and opened the gate.” Upon inquiring with a neighboring farmer, she was informed that Skye was deceased and two ponies had sustained injuries. She detailed that one-year-old Oak had its two front legs bound together with barbed wire, and Red, also one year old, “had wire twisted tightly around one leg, into his flesh.” “This is what has destroyed me,” she commented, further noting that the horse was “as old as my children.” She added, “I’ve lived more years with her in my life than I have without her.” She reported that ponies Red and Oak were recovering, and she advised other horse owners in the vicinity to exercise vigilance. “The fields [the horses] were walked across run alongside the main inter-city trainline [between Cardiff and London],” she stated. Her hope, she conveyed, was that “someone has seen something suspicious in the early hours of the morning.” Police confirmed that investigations are ongoing following the discovery on Tuesday, November 19.