Delta police have identified a “person of interest” in their investigation into suspicious meat being left near a trail in North Delta’s Watershed Park.
Around 2:05 p.m. on the afternoon of Saturday, Aug. 17, DPD officers doing proactive patrols in the park identified a person of interest and seized meat including goat brain, liver, chicken, kidney and minced beef.
A press release from the department notes that, contrary to some reports on social media, police have not arrested anyone in relation this investigation.
Last week, Delta police issued a warning to dog owners to be mindful while walking their pets in Watershed Park following several reports over the last month of suspicious meat being found near one of the trail entrances.
So far this summer police have been contacted four times (July 17, July 28, Aug. 1 and Aug. 7) regarding suspicious meat being left in the park near the trail entrance by 63rd Avenue. Typically the meat — about 7-10 pounds of it cut into large 2-3 inch chunks — has been left just off the trail.
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The investigation is ongoing as police await the results of testing to determine if the meat was tampered with. Police say it is unknown why the meat was being dumped in Watershed Park.
“Our officers have also taken the step of inquiring within the veterinary community regarding if they have seen any spikes or trends in animal poisoning in the Metro Vancouver area. There does not appear to be any trend in this regard which should alarm animal owners,” Cris Leykauf, public affairs manager for the Delta Police Department, said in a press release.
As of Friday evening (Aug. 16), no dogs had been reported as being poisoned in relation to the dumped meat.
Leykauf said that until police know whether the meat had been tampered with or have more information about why it was being left in the park, she couldn’t speculate on any possible consequences a suspect might face in this case.
editor@northdeltareporter.com
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