Guinea pig meat and carcasses were found in the fridge of a prison farm after a group of inmates were asked to care for the creatures in a work-release program near Perth, Australia
A group of prisoners have been accused of eating the animals they were caring for while volunteering at a shelter in Australia.
Guards at Wooroloo Prison farm, which is around 30 miles from Perth, discovered guinea pig meat and carcasses in a fridge.
It’s understood that inmates killed the abandoned creatures at the farm before cooking and sharing the meat with fellow cons after they smuggled it back into the prison. While many westerners couldn’t imagine stomaching the rodents, in some parts of South America and Asia the creature is considered a delicacy – and thought to taste like rabbit with a meatier flavour. It comes after a toddler, 3, was sick on her dress before a reality TV winner beat her to death.
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The work-release program has been shut down by bosses in the jail, while those accused of poaching the creatures for their inmate meat trade have faced lengthy interrogations.
Speaking to The West, Corrective Services Commissioner Brad Royce said: “All Section 95 activities from Wooroloo in the community are suspended pending the outcome of investigations.
“It’s particularly concerning given the Section 95 community work program is an integral part of the Department’s rehabilitation and reintegration efforts, demonstrating the valuable contributions prisoners can make to Western Australian communities.”
Before the incident, the WA prison system had hailed the work-release program as one of its most successful initiatives.
Back in 2024, a New York restaurant went viral for including guinea pig on its menu – with it being well-received by locals.
“It’s better than chicken. Better than rabbit,” manager Lucio Barrera told The New York Post, adding that the head is the “best part”. His restaurant was packed out most nights, with hungry diners tearing into the 1kg animals, which can measure around 40cm long.
The $116 (£86) dish was “selling like hotcakes” according to Lucio, and the restaurant had to order the rodents in “large quantities” to keep up with the demand. They were being sourced from a small Ecuadorian farm.
Lucio, who hails from Cuenca, Ecuador runs the restaurant with his husband Marcelo Barrera. The pair originally specialised in rotisserie chicken but started serving guinea pigs during COVID-19 after demand from Ecuadorian residents in the area who wanted a “taste of home”.