Rebecca Westergaard, Pataskala, Ohio 75 year old woman mauled to death and partially eaten by her neighbor’s pigs who may now face criminal charges.
An elderly woman in Ohio has died after she was ‘mauled to death’ and partially eaten by no less than two pigs from her neighbor’s yard on Christmas Day.
Rebecca Westergaard, 75, was found dead on the property of her Pataskala home Christmas afternoon after her niece called in a welfare check, Pataskala police said, according to The Columbus Dispatch.
Westergaard — who lived alone — was due to pick up the niece that morning but never showed up.
75 year old Pataskala woman bled to death
When police arrived at the woman’s home, they found Westergaard’s body by the front steps of her home — having been apparently mauled and killed by a pair of swine that investigators say roamed onto the property.
Pataskala Police Chief Bruce Brooks called the incident a ‘horrible, horrible situation,’ while remaining tight lipped about how the neighbor’s pigs made their way into Westergaard’s yard amid an ongoing investigation.
It remained unclear if the pig’s owner, who had no been identified, would now face any charges.
An autopsy is underway to determine Westergaard’s cause of death, Brooks added. Preliminary reports indicate the woman dying after bleeding to death as a result of extensive injuries by livestock animals, according to WBNS-TV.
Of note, the victim is understood to have had prior health conditions which may have only further engendered her being prone to abuse.
Authorities have yet to say what will now become of the ‘pet’ pigs as no law exists mandating farm animals be ‘euthanized’ following deadly behavior against humans.
