SLIPPERY ROCK TWP — State police today are looking for suspects who killed and stole the heads of three trophy bucks from a private deer farm.

“It’s like someone coming onto your property and shooting your dog or your cattle,” said farm owner Bob McConnell, who has raised the animals for breeding and shooting preserves for 8 years.

These particular deer carried “monster racks” and weighty price tags.

One of the deer, a 4-year-old, “scored over 200 inches” and was worth about $15,000, he said. The other two, both 3-year-olds, scored in the 140- to 160-inch range and were worth about $5,000 each.

The inch count is a measurement of the rack from the base to all points.

State police are investigating with assistance from the Pennsylvania Game Commission. Police said the offenses are theft and criminal mischief.

McConnell is offering a $5,000 reward for a tip leading to the conviction of the person or people responsible.

McConnell, who lives in Grove City, said the incident occurred between 5 p.m. Monday and 9 a.m. Tuesday.

Footprints in the snow lead McConnell to believe three people walked off nearby Slippery Rock Road and across the 6-acre farm to the penned deer.

The three deer were killed by bow and arrow, one each from three separate pens, causing some of the other deer inside the pens to scare and bust through fences and gates.

Anyone with information is asked to call the state police at 724-284-8100.