Darrell Mowat: Killed horse and severed head, then left head in car for "prank"

The grisly discovery of a severed horse's head in the back of a pickup truck parked in the driveway of a home on Valley Way in Niagara Falls, Ont., has led to the arrest of a 28-year-old man, the Niagara Regional Police announced Friday.

Canadian authorities believe Darrell Mowat killed the horse at a farm outside Niagara Falls and placed the horse's head in the truck -- saying the incident was likely "a gruesome and ill-conceived prank," rather than a true threat along the lines of the infamous horse's head scene in "The Godfather," according to a statement released Friday.

Authorities called the killing of the horse "bizarre and senseless."

At about 9 a.m. Wednesday, the resident of the Valley Way home, who was not identified by police, called for help after making the terrible discovery.

Investigators with the Niagara Regional Police detective service unit and forensics unit teamed up with the Niagara Falls Humane Society to investigate the case.

The probe led authorities to a farm where the decapitated carcass of the horse was located. A man who was present at the farm then was arrested and taken into custody. more