Chetumal, Q.R. — A pet crematorium is being investigated for defrauding at least 50 people who found their dogs tossed in a vacant lot. The pet owners paid between 1,500 and 2,500 pesos to have their dogs cremated and the ashes returned to them.
On Thursday, police reported confirming the discovery of decaying dog bodies in a vacant lot near the crematorium. Several of the owners called authorities after recognizing the body of their pet laying in the lot.
Quintana Roo authorities have started an investigation.
“The State Attorney General’s Office reports the start of an investigation for crimes against the environment and wildlife as well as fraud derived from more than 50 citizen complaints, to the detriment of the same number of private victims, after verifying the existence of dog carcasses in a state of putrefaction on a property near a pet crematorium, which was secured,” they said.
The bodies of the dogs were found in a vacant lot on Primo de Verdad Avenue between Universidad and Boulevard Avenues in the Barrio Bravo neighborhood of Chetumal.
“Citizens recognized the corpses of their pets that had supposedly been incinerated in a crematorium on Retorno Isla Contoy between Héroes de Chapultepec and Guadalupe Victoria in the Barrio Bravo neighborhood,” they said in a statement.
Police said pet owners paid between 1,500 and 2,500 pesos for the cremation service of their pets that included the services of certificate, biodegradable urn, bio-ashes, release bag, souvenirs and home delivery of the urn.
According to authorities, the pet crematorium also offered other services including free thanatology and psychology, veterinary medical consultations, chemotherapy and surgeries.
According to initial investigations, the people who hired the services of the crematorium received urns that, instead of containing the ashes of their pets, contained soil.
Police say their initial investigations indicate that the pet crematorium does not have an operating license and/or municipal permits for commercial activity and was therefore seized.
State officials say they are continuing their investigation to find the person or persons responsible in order to bring them to justice. The Quintana Roo Attorney General’s Office (FGE) is calling on citizens who have been victims of this establishment to file a complaint in person or online: https://enlinea.fgeqroo.gob.mx/
