Animal sacrifices are on the rise in Queens, with various animals including chickens, pigs, and rats being tortured, mutilated, or killed in twisted religious rituals in parkland surrounding Jamaica Bay. Over the span of just over a month, at least nine wounded animals or carcasses have been discovered in federally-managed areas such as Spring Creek Park in Howard Beach and the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge in Broad Channel. Among the disturbing discoveries were five live pigs with partially severed ears, a near-dead baby rat tied up in a bag with chicken bones, a freshly-decapitated chicken head, a live hen in distress, and a dead dog with its neck snapped.
According to Sloane Quealy, co-founder and president of Zion’s Mission Animal Rescue, the frequency of animal sacrifices in the area has been increasing, with sacrificial rituals happening more frequently each week. Kristen Latuga, who runs Brucie’s Angels animal sanctuary in Long Island, has taken in all five of the ailing swine found in the park. Several rescuers and a local religious leader suggest that the torture is linked to a sect of Hindu devotees who worship the goddess Kali and have practiced animal sacrifice in the area around Jamaica Bay for decades.
Jamaica Bay has been a popular religious site among Hindu Guyanese and Indo-Caribbean communities living in nearby neighborhoods such as Richmond Hill and Ozone Park. Members of these communities regularly gather along the waterway, often leaving offerings such as flowers and fruits, as well as statues of deities and prayer flags. Animal rescuers recently discovered three piglets with their ears and tails cut off near Hindu deity statuettes and prayer flags, indicating a connection between the animal sacrifices and religious practices in the area.
While the US Supreme Court has upheld the right to animal sacrifice on religious grounds in a 1993 ruling, New York State law considers aggravated cruelty to animals a felony. Despite this, there have been no 911 calls for animal abuse in the 106th Precinct that covers Howard Beach. John Di Leonardo from Humane Long Island noted that Jamaica Bay has become a hotspot for animal cruelty, with a significant increase in reports of animal sacrifices in the area. Councilwoman Joann Ariola has expressed her concern over the practice and is working with federal partners and local religious groups to put an end to it immediately.
The disturbing practice of animal sacrifices in Queens has sparked outrage among animal rights advocates and local officials. Calls for action to address the issue and bring an end to the cruelty have intensified. Groups such as Hindu organization Sadhana have organized clean-ups in the Jamaica Bay area where carcasses have been found. Although the practice of animal sacrifice is protected under the law on religious grounds, the cruelty inflicted on animals in these rituals has raised serious ethical concerns and prompted calls for stricter enforcement of animal welfare laws in the area.
