BAYONNE — Two goat heads and a dead sheep were found along the city’s western shoreline Sunday and Monday, prompting law enforcement to investigate how they got there.

Residents told The Jersey Journal their children found one of the goats’ heads and the dead sheep on Monday near 16th Street Park, while another goat head was found Sunday near Veterans Stadium.

Police responded to the scene on Monday, where they found a brown goat head, but said they had no knowledge of the other head and the dead sheep found as well.

Bayonne police spokesperson, Lt. Eric Amato, said it is “undetermined” where the animal came from or how it ended up on the shoreline.

"It is unsure if this was a prank but the Bayonne Police Municipal Humane Law Enforcement Officers are following up on the incident," he said.

Irene Borngraeber, the executive director of Liberty Humane Society, which handles animal control for Bayonne, said she was called by a resident about the incident and reported it to the police and health departments.

She said there could be animal cruelty charges that stem from the incident "if anyone can actually be proved to be in connection with it."

“It also depends on where the animals came from as well. The keeping of livestock in Jersey City and Bayonne is not permitted, which also begs the question of how did (the dead animals) get there,” she added.

Liberty Humane Society has received reports of beheaded birds in Jersey City in the past, which Borngraeber said “some people have suggested were part of a ritualistic sacrifice.”

“We have no grounds to believe that is the case (in this situation), but it is something that we do look out for and we have investigated,” she said.

The grisly findings in Bayonne are not the first bizarre animals to be found dead in Hudson County this year. In February, police in Jersey City found a dead 6-foot snake hanging from a Virgin Mary statue at the corner of Seventh and Brunswick streets.

Corey W. McDonald may be reached at cmcdonald@jjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @cwmcdonald_. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook.