Ponce Mayor Marlese Sifre Rodríguez called the discovery of dead dogs and cats inside several trash bags along Puerto Rico Highway PR-132, at kilometer 24.6 near the entrance to the La Providencia neighborhood in Ponce, "inacceptable" and said it left her "deeply outraged," in written remarks on Tuesday afternoon, November 10. "There is no possible justification for abandoning the bodies of these animals this way," she said, asking what happened, how they died and who is responsible.
According to preliminary information from the Puerto Rico Police, a citizen spotted the bags and, as she was about to put them in a container, found the dead animals inside. About 12 white bags containing dead dogs and cats were identified at the site. The total number of animals and the circumstances of their deaths remain under investigation.
The coordinator of Law 154 for the Welfare and Protection of Animals, along with staff from the Municipal Office for Emergency Management and the Ruth Barnes Animal Shelter, went to the site and took charge of the bodies. Most were in a state of decomposition, and the bodies will be buried in a common grave.
The Puerto Rico Police is investigating the case, complaint number 2026-3-858-09370, handled by Agent Vélez, badge 26210. Sifre Rodríguez, who called stray animals one of her administration’s priorities, demanded a rigorous investigation reaching "the last consequences" and asked anyone with information about unusual movements, vehicles or people leaving bags in the area to contact the police and cite the complaint number.