Thursday, August 31, 2006

Man Dies As Dog Attacks In Pen

FLORIDA -- A penned Boxer dog fatally mauled a man in south Miami-Dade County on Monday night, the second such attack in South Florida in 10 days.

Officers found Pablo Fleites, 56, dead inside a dog pen behind a house at 20280 SW 190th St. Also inside the pen: a 5-year-old male Boxer covered in the man's blood, Miami-Dade police spokeswoman Joanne Duncan said. The department's Animal Services Unit took custody of the Boxer.

Investigators say Fleites, who lived at the address, may have been intoxicated when he entered the pen Monday evening and the dog attacked him. The pen also was home to a 6-month-old female Boxer that was not injured.

The property is owned by Daysi, Adelfina and Jesus Ynigo, according to Miami-Dade County property records. No one witnessed the attack, but one of the family members found Fleites' body about 9:30 p.m. and called police, Duncan said.

On Aug. 18, Shawna Willey's 120-pound Presa Canario attacked her while she was giving it a bath behind her Coral Springs home in The Hills neighborhood. In that incident, there was a witness: Willey's 9-year-old daughter.

Willey, 30, also had a 14-year-old son and lived with her boyfriend. She owned the large dog, named Xino, and another Presa Canario because she felt they could protect her from her husband, whom she was separated from.

Coral Springs police officers shot Xino when they found it standing over Willey's lifeless body.

(Sun Sentinel - August 30, 2006)

Saturday, August 26, 2006

California: Gert "Abby" Hedengran and his wife, Roena "Emma" Hedengran take plea bargain in case involving loose tiger that was shot and killed

CALIFORNIA -- Despite insisting multiple times that they didn't own the tiger killed in the Tierra Rejada Valley early last year, Gert "Abby" Hedengran and his wife, Roena "Emma" Hedengran, reportedly plan to plead guilty to charges related to the incident, after making a deal with prosecutors.

A federal court hearing is set for Sept. 5.

Tuffy the tiger was shot after it escaped its owners and wandered in the rural region between Simi Valley and the Santa Rosa Valley for about three weeks.


Authorities alleged that the large carnivore belonged to the Hedengrans, who purposely misled LIED TO investigators during a weeklong search in February 2005.

The tiger was eventually found roaming near a city park in Moorpark that borders homes and schools next to the 23 Freeway. It was shot for safety reasons, authorities said at the time.

AFTER BEING ARRESTED IN CALIFORNIA, THEY FLED TO NEVADA

The Hedengrans now live with their exotic cats in Pahrump, Nev., 60 miles from Las Vegas.


The couple was arrested in March of this year and were later released on their own recognizance after they were charged in connection with the shooting.

The couple faced initial charges that could have resulted in a maximum sentence of 60 years in federal prison for Gert Hedengran.

Roena faced up to 10 years in federal prison, according to Assistant U.S. District Attorney Joseph Johns, who's been handling the case.

They were due to appear in court recently, but the case was postponed because U.S. District Judge George H. King wanted more time to review the agreement before he made his decision.


"The defendants have signed plea agreements that have been filed with the District Court," Johns said.

"The knee-jerk response of some folks was to criticize law enforcement for killing the tiger instead of trying to tranquilize it with darts," he added.

HOW MANY TIMES DID THEY SHOOT THIS POOR ANIMAL BEFORE IT FINALLY DIED?

But even with such a careful, conservative decision, he said, the first three rifle shots missed the tiger.

"It makes you wonder what might have happened if they had decided to tranquilize the tiger and all of the darts had then missed the target," he said.

Had that been the case, criticism would have been heaped on law enforcement, especially if the tiger had escaped into the chaparral and later killed someone's child, the district attorney said.

 

"Law enforcement did the best they could in a difficult situation," Johns said. "It doesn't take much imagination to think of the terrible consequences that could have resulted from a 600-pound Siberian tiger stalking the purple sage hillsides and oak woodlands of suburban Moorpark."

According to Nye County, Nev. Animal Control Supervisor Debbie Pemberton, housing for the exotic animals was deemed inadequate in April of this year and the Hedengrans were asked to add additional perimeter fencing.

Pemberton said earlier this week that the animals' containment in Nevada is now within county/USDA guidelines.

(Simi Valley Acorn - Aug 25, 2006)

Earlier:

Thursday, August 24, 2006

Wyoming: Levi Hymas, 29, charged with animal cruelty

Full Name: Levi Tate Hymas
Gender: Male
City: Rock Springs, Wyoming 82901
Height: 5'09"
Weight: 150 lbs
Hair Color: BROWN
Arrest Age: 29
Arrest Date: 08/24/2006
Arrest Time: 9:45 PM
Arresting Agency: SCSO
Arrest Location: Sweetwater County, Wyoming
Charges
#1 DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE
#2 CRUELTY TO ANIMALS

Sunday, August 20, 2006

Police say Tyrone "Ty" Francis Morsello was running puppy mill

GEORGIA -- A Dacula man who police say operated a puppy mill was arrested Wednesday on animal cruelty charges.
People buying pets from Tyrone "Ty" Francis Morsello and his company, World Wide Brokerage U.S.A., complained about the conditions dogs were living in said Cpl. Darren Moloney, spokesman for the Gwinnett County Police Department.  Moloney said the animals had filthy water and lived in dirty conditions. The animals that had been purchased suffered from illnesses associated with neglect, he said.  Morsello, 35, was issued 67 citations for animal cruelty and released. Police serving a search warrant at his home, on 2411 Harbins Road, saw more than half the dogs there suffering from various stages of neglect, Moloney said.  Moloney said about 67 dogs were impounded and taken for treatment. The dogs that were impounded include Yorkshire Terriers, Pomeranians, Chihuahuas and Springer Spaniels.  They are being treated by various animal hospitals and rescue organizations.

(Gwinnett Daily Post - Aug 19, 2006)