Beheaded deer off Pickmere Lane near Knutsford could be work of devil worshippers (From Knutsford Guardian)

Beheaded deer off Pickmere Lane near Knutsford could be work of devil worshippers

4:00pm Wednesday 17th June 2009

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A DEER was found beheaded last week in a country lane near Knutsford.

The discovery sparked speculation that the decapitation could be linked to devil worship.

Police said the young stag’s body had been dumped in a ditch off Pickmere Lane, Pickmere.

But the red deer’s head appeared to have been taken away.

However, as the Guardian went to press, officers could not confirm how the deer was mutilated.

Sergeant Andy Preece, of Knutsford Police Station in Toft Road, said there had been no similar incidents in the area recently.

“If anything, you’d expect the head to be found and the carcass to have gone,” he said.

“But the notable thing was it wouldn’t have had proper antlers, so the head would have been of no use.”

The incident came just days after the Guardian received an anonymous email claiming Satanists were worshiping in Knutsford.

A man wrote to the paper and alleged that he had been part of a group, but left because of their ‘frightening practices’.

He claimed the group of about 16 people would punish him if they discovered he had passed on the information.

“They have forced me to swear many oaths of secrecy and so I cannot reveal the identities,” he wrote.

A Guardian reporter replied to the email, but did not hear back from the man and could not verify the allegations.

Meanwhile, the young stag’s body was found by a farmer in the ditch on the stretch near Pickmere Nurseries Ltd at about 9.50pm on Tuesday last week.

The deer’s head had been removed fairly cleanly and the amount of decay suggested the body has been there for about a week.

Police picked up a message about the incident on their mailbox on Wednesday.

The incident was also reported to the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and trading standards officials.

Tatton Park ranger Tim Birtles was called to the scene to check if the deer belonged to the 1,000-acre estate.

He did not believe the stag was from that herd, and was surprised to see it was a red deer.

The head had been removed using a method that was similar to how a hunter would prepare one for mounting on a wall.

But Mr Birtles told the Guardian that was unusual, because the young deer’s antlers would not have been developed enough.

Deer are said to be used in satanic rituals as sacrificial animals.

It is also believed their skins are used as cloaks and headdresses during devil worship rituals.

However, police could not say whether devil worship had been involved in last week’s incident.

“That’s just speculation here,” said Sgt Preece.

“The incident was closed and we’re not going to make a big issue of it.

“I’ve made all my staff aware that it happened and we’ve got it in mind.”

The nearest red deer herds to Pickmere Lane are in places including Tatton Park, about three miles away, and Macclesfield Forest, about 20 miles away.

Yesterday, Tuesday, staff at the Red Lion pub and Pickmere Nurseries Ltd had not heard about the incident.

Any new information can be left for police on 0845 4586380.

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