Bruce Ray Pfeifer faces 11 charges of animal cruelty and nine counts of failure to bury dead animals after a search warrant was executed in 2011 at his home on Rockfish Valley Highway in Afton.
“He left the state when this was being investigated,” Commonwealth’s Attorney Anthony Martin said after Wednesday’s hearing.
Last week, Martin said, officers discovered Pfeifer in Georgia and extradited him to Nelson County.
Wednesday morning, Nelson General District Court Judge Ed Burnette decided to deny bond based on Pfeifer’s three-year hiatus.
Court documents show Nelson County Animal Control received reports of dead animals at Pfeifer’s property in March 2011.
In her search warrant affidavit, Deputy Carla Thompson wrote, “I responded to the residence on 3/14/11 and found at least three dead dogs and there was also a foul odor around the property. I observed several live dogs in chain link kennels and two running loose on the property that were emaciated.”
Thompson also noted she did not find any food or water provided for the animals.
In her search warrant return, Thompson listed three dead dogs lying in kennels beside Pfeifer’s home. Nine live dogs were seized during the search.
Ray Uttaro, then-director of Nelson County Public Safety, told The Daily Progress in Charlottesville that investigators recovered plastic bags filled with canine body parts.
Pfeifer’s wife, Robin, was arrested in 2011 on similar charges.
Court records show she pleaded not guilty but was convicted at trial. She was not given a jail sentence but was ordered to pay more than $1,000 in fines.
Pfeifer is set to appear for trial in January.
Animal cruelty qualifies as a Class 1 misdemeanor in Virginia. If convicted, he could face up to 11 years in prison.
(News Advance - December 10, 2014)
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