SYDNEY, Australia -- Seventeen kangaroos have died after being deliberately run down by a driver in Australia, an animal welfare group said Monday.

The carcasses of 16 kangaroos were found Monday along a 100-metre stretch of road in the eastern city of Brisbane, said Michael Beatty, a spokesman for the RSPCA in Queensland state. Another kangaroo had to be euthanized because of its injuries. Many of the animals were young, Beatty said.

"They've definitely been deliberately run over," Beatty said. "You can quite clearly see the tire tracks where they've gone off the road to hit them."

The group has asked for any witnesses to come forward with information.