The alleged mass slaughter of horses on a property near Wagga was not the story our team thought we'd be reporting when we came to work on Wednesday.
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So when Wagga City Council general manager Peter Thompson (pictured) issued a statement with the title "Hundreds of horses found slaughtered near Wagga" at 1.26pm it's safe to say the revelation came as a shock.
More than 500 horse carcasses were reportedly found in a dry creek bed, giving the council the power to enter the property to investigate.
"Once the inspection of the property commenced it became clear that the slaughtering of horses had been occurring for a long period of time," Mr Thompson said.
Numerous separate dumps of carcasses were reportedly discovered at locations throughout the property - some, Mr Thompson said, were no more than skeletal remains while others were killed relatively recently.
The seriousness and significance of the discovery was made even more clear by the fact Mr Thompson attended the property and saw the dead horses - in varying states of decay - for himself.
The general manager has alleged an illegal knackery was being operated at the location.
However, that allegation and also the number of carcasses has been disputed by Adrian Talbot, the man believed to be linked to the property.
While we were unsuccessful in our attempts to get comment from Mr Talbot, he told the ABC he was "100 per cent sure" his property was the one under investigation.
Mr Talbot, who leases land at Downside and has denied any wrongdoing, told the ABC the number of carcasses on the property was closer to 30 or 40.
Mr Talbot said the animals were euthanised by a licensed shooter to provide meat for his 10 dogs.
A council spokesperson told the ABC it stood by its prior statement regarding the number of carcasses found.
The discovery of the dead horses and the subsequent council-led investigation has made headlines across the country and possibly beyond.
It's also prompted calls for a parliamentary inquiry into the matter, with Animal Justice Party MLC Emma Hurst claiming at least 260 of the horse carcasses found on the property were brumbies.
"The community is clearly very distressed and concerned about how this could have happened, and an open and transparent inquiry process is essential," Ms Hurst said on Thursday.
"How so many animals were ever so-called rehomed to one individual is highly questionable and the inquiry committee will need to examine who was involved and how this was ever allowed to happen."
Environment Minister Penny Sharpe has requested an review into the wild horse rehoming program and on Friday it was confirmed the NSW upper house inquiry into the aerial shooting of brumbies in the Kosciuszko National Park would hold a fresh hearing to investigate the Wagga discovery.
As Ms Hurst said this week, there are lot of unanswered questions.
Questions the community wants - and deserves to have - answered.
Our coverage of the discovery and subsequent calls for an inquiry (included below in case you missed them), were among our most-read stories this week.
We'll be following this story closely and keeping you up to date with the latest developments as they happen.
Enjoy the rest of what's shaping up to be a sunny Sunday and enjoy the week ahead. Thanks for your ongoing support.
Andrew Pearson - Editor, The Daily Advertiser
