Animal rescuers were mortified at their discovery of what many are calling an animal "house of horrors," and in an equally surprising turn, as the culprit tipped officials off as to where to find the gruesome scene.
Theresa Sumpter and her Pit Crew Dog Rescue team arrived at an abandoned house in east Detroit, greeted with the foul odor of blood and decomposing bodies as soon as they entered, according to USA Today.
The basement walls were coated in what appeared to be fresh blood, and on the floor laid an extensively horrifying array of dog limbs and corpses bathed in even more blood.
The sickening scene appeared to imply something sinister, and it was certainly not within the range of anything Sumpter had seen before.
"We investigate dog fighting, but this isn't something that dog fighters usually do," she said.
Surprisingly enough, the person who confessed to the animal slaughter was the very same person who alerted Sumpter to the abandoned house in the first place.
A year after the incident, a 14-year-old boy, the same one who tipped off Sumpter's team, confessed to the animal abuse that took place in the home, the Detroit Free Press reported.
The boy was convicted of animal cruelty, fighting and killing, among other charges.
"We discovered he is a minor. This youngster did make a full confession that he not only mutilated dogs, but also had been torturing them in other ways." said Sumpter.
Police reports indicate that during his torture sessions, the boy would sometimes tie the dogs up and stick their heads under water while watching them die, a process that could have possibly taken the boy hours, according to WXYZ Detroit.
He is currently serving time in a juvenile corrections facility and is up for a hearing in November, when officials will make decisions on his future course of treatment.
