A woman was seen by surveillance cameras on June 3 abandoning a container of puppies behind a Keith’s Super Store on Mississippi Highway 603 and Kiln-Waveland Cutoff around noon.

The puppies were not discovered until approximately 8:30 p.m., Waveland Police Department Investigator Matt Sekinger said. “There were seven puppies dumped off and four died.”

A store employee was taking out the trash when the container was first noticed.

The three surviving puppies were brought to the Hancock County Animal Shelter.

That night, the police department put up photos from the surveillance footage on the social networking site Facebook and asked for any tips.

“The footage posted to the department Facebook page got over 23,000 hits in two days,” Sekinger said.

On Wednesday, the woman, a Hancock County resident with a Picayune address, “walked in off the street and turned herself in,” Sekinger said.

She gave a full confession and was charged with one count animal cruelty, he said, and was held on a bond of $1,000.

The Waveland Police Department is not releasing any of her information because the case is still under investigation, said Sekinger.

The department is concerned for her safety as well, “she has received threats,” Sekinger said was another reason why her information has not been released.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals has contacted the Waveland Police Department, Sekinger said.

“What she did was wrong,” he said, “but she is going about it the right way.”