The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office has uncovered the intact remains of 117 dogs, along with 21 skulls, hundreds of bones and over 600 collars, during a week-long excavation at Miranda’s Rescue Animal Sanctuary in Fortuna, California. The 50-acre facility had marketed itself as a “no-kill” rescue, but many of the exhumed canines showed evidence of bullet fragments, and a barn on the property is now believed by investigators to have been used as a killing site.

Authorities began probing the shelter in April after receiving what they described as credible information alleging felony animal abuse, cruelty, fraud and conspiracy. Ground-penetrating radar surveys and subsequent digging revealed two mass grave sites, with 70 sets of remains X-rayed on site revealing bullet fragments. The sheriff’s office stated that the cause of death for many appeared to be gunshot wounds, while additional remains were too decomposed to recover and were left in place.

The founder, Shannon Miranda, has not been charged and did not respond to requests for comment, though he posted statements on the shelter’s website acknowledging that euthanasia had been performed in “rare circumstances” involving terminal illness or dangerous behaviour. However, the sheriff’s office said records show that over the past five and a half years more than 900 animals were transferred to the rescue, with only around 100 adoptions confirmed; roughly 730 animals remain unaccounted for. The shelter charged fees of several hundred to several thousand dollars per animal for intake, a practice common among such organisations.

The investigation was prompted by two local animal advocates who own adjoining property. They used trail cameras to monitor activity and later entered the grounds without permission, exhuming eight dogs with apparent head wounds, which they turned over to the authorities. The sheriff’s office cautioned that the evidence review will require “a significant amount of time” given the volume of data and witnesses. No criminal charges have been filed, and the investigation continues.