By . Associated Press . and Daily Mail Reporter . As many as 25 dead cats have been found inside neatly-tied plastic bags hanging from tree limbs in a New York City suburb. Tests on three of the cats that were found in Yonkers on Thursday have revealed they were killed by blunt force trauma to the head - and a baseball bat, two shovels and a metal pipe were found nearby. Investigations are underway, but Ernest Lungaro, a director of the SPCA, said there has been tension in the neighborhood over feeding stations some residents set up for feral cats. The animals found on Thursday were in different stages of decomposition; some were skeletons, while others appeared to have been left there just a few days ago. Grisly discovery: The bodies of around 30 cats have been discovered in bags hanging from trees in Yonkers . Police and the SPCA responded to a call . at around 10.50am after public works employees clearing trash from a lot . near Overlook Terrace came across the cats among a cluster of trees . near homes. Bizarre: Some had fallen out of the bags after they were torn by wildlife, authorities said . The cats appear to have been put in the bags at different times, Lieutenant Patrick McCormack told the Yonkers Daily Voice. Each bag appeared to have contained one . cat each, authorities said. But wildlife had apparently torn open some of the bags, causing the animals to fall out, authorities said. Given the sanitation schedule of the area, they were dumped in the . last year, the Journal News reported. Lungaro, who works for Westchester's Humane Law Enforcement Division in the SPCA, told The Journal News . it appeared the cats were dead before being put into the bags because . any cat would have been able to claw its way out. 'It's something very odd,' he said. 'It's a lot of cats to be disposed of in a year.' McCormack said they had not found any evidence that the deaths were connected to a ritual. No suspects have been taken into custody in the incident, but authorities are interviewing residents. Scene: The bags were found by public works employees in trees along this Yonkers street on Thursday . Neighbors said they weren't surprised the cats were found in the trees. 'That place is always dirty so when you see a bag there, it's nothing new,' said Guy John, who lives across the streets. 'You see rats running out of there.' Anyone with information is asked to call detectives at 914-377-7724 or the SPCA's Animal Cruelty Hotline at 914-941-7797.
The neatly-tied bags containing the cats were found by public works employees in Yonkers on Thursday as they cleared out a nearby lot .
They were in various stages of decomposition - some were skeletons .
Necropsies are now being carried out on the cats to determine how they died or were killed .
By . Associated Press . and Daily Mail Reporter . As many as 25 dead cats have been found inside neatly-tied plastic bags hanging from tree limbs in a New York City suburb. Tests on three of the cats that were found in Yonkers on Thursday have revealed they were killed by blunt force trauma to the head - and a baseball bat, two shovels and a metal pipe were found nearby. Investigations are underway, but Ernest Lungaro, a director of the SPCA, said there has been tension in the neighborhood over feeding stations some residents set up for feral cats. The animals found on Thursday were in different stages of decomposition; some were skeletons, while others appeared to have been left there just a few days ago. Grisly discovery: The bodies of around 30 cats have been discovered in bags hanging from trees in Yonkers . Police and the SPCA responded to a call . at around 10.50am after public works employees clearing trash from a lot . near Overlook Terrace came across the cats among a cluster of trees . near homes. Bizarre: Some had fallen out of the bags after they were torn by wildlife, authorities said . The cats appear to have been put in the bags at different times, Lieutenant Patrick McCormack told the Yonkers Daily Voice. Each bag appeared to have contained one . cat each, authorities said. But wildlife had apparently torn open some of the bags, causing the animals to fall out, authorities said. Given the sanitation schedule of the area, they were dumped in the . last year, the Journal News reported. Lungaro, who works for Westchester's Humane Law Enforcement Division in the SPCA, told The Journal News . it appeared the cats were dead before being put into the bags because . any cat would have been able to claw its way out. 'It's something very odd,' he said. 'It's a lot of cats to be disposed of in a year.' McCormack said they had not found any evidence that the deaths were connected to a ritual. No suspects have been taken into custody in the incident, but authorities are interviewing residents. Scene: The bags were found by public works employees in trees along this Yonkers street on Thursday . Neighbors said they weren't surprised the cats were found in the trees. 'That place is always dirty so when you see a bag there, it's nothing new,' said Guy John, who lives across the streets. 'You see rats running out of there.' Anyone with information is asked to call detectives at 914-377-7724 or the SPCA's Animal Cruelty Hotline at 914-941-7797.
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