Gruesome act of animal cruelty as 22 rabbits slaughtered in Garfield Some rabbits survived a vicious animal cruelty attack at John Cleary's Garfield property. MYSTERY surrounds a gruesome act of animal cruelty on New Year's Day, with the slaughter of 22 rabbits linked to an address book stolen during an attack on a commercial rabbit producer last year. The horrified owners of a farm in Victoria's southeast discovered most of their rabbits had been stomped on and thrown against walls early on Wednesday. Police are investigating if animal activists are behind the shocking act. About six weeks ago, activists are believed to have broken into a major Gippsland producer's property. Rabbits were released from cages, tens of thousands of dollars worth of damage was caused - with concrete poured down drains - and an address book containing the addresses of the producer's customers was stolen. John Cleary, whose Garfield property was broken into about midnight on New Year's Day, said he had bought the rabbits from the Gippsland producer about a year ago. Police said his rabbits were being bred commercially but Mr Cleary said he had realised he wouldn't make any money from the rabbits. Instead, his daughter-in-law kept them in a shed and cared for them lovingly as a hobby. She went to check if they had enough food and water about 3am on Wednesday when she saw the bloodied rabbits lying on the ground amid their cages, which had been tipped over. Cardinia CIU Detective Leading Senior Constable Colin Beard said it was a "very, very sad scene" and those responsible were "sick people (who) need some help." He said there was a "good possibility" the incident was linked to previous break-ins at other rabbit farms, which were the subject of an ongoing police investigation, and that activists could be the culprits. "It's too early to form any opinion as to who is responsible," he said. It would be extremely unusual for them to go to those lengths ... but it is an avenue that we're going to look at. Mr Cleary said his family was horrified at what had happened. "I hope they catch the bastards," he said. He said the rabbit shed was in an isolated part of his property which could not be seen from the road. Nothing else was damaged or stolen. Police believe multiple offenders are responsible and may be nursing scratches from the older rabbits, which were mostly left unharmed, while the young bunnies were brutally killed.