On Nov. 23, 62-year-old Jose Cruz Cazares Robles went for a walk, leaving his family’s home on Bethany Road in Madison. He never returned.
The next day Rockingham County sheriff’s deputies found Robles’ body at the bottom of a steep embankment on McCollum Road.
He was covered in dog bites. His clothes and shoes were ripped from his body and left several yards away.
A family member said in a phone interview Tuesday that investigators told him not to talk to the media.
On Nov. 24, the sheriff’s office obtained warrants to take 15 dogs belonging to Daniel McCollum at 1122 McCollum Road in Madison, the residence across from where Robles’ body was found.
The dogs are being held at the Rockingham County Animal Shelter in Wentworth.
Warrants to allow deputies to take the dogs obtained by the News & Record revealed the two incidents are related.
But the sheriff’s office refused to comment on the incident.
Robles was last seen at 1 p.m. that Sunday. His family reported him missing at 7:30 p.m.
Deputies patrolled the area looking for him. The department also sent texts and email alerts to the community, reporting a missing person.
Around 10 a.m. the following day, a deputy drove down McCollum Road and was confronted by a pack of dogs.
Police records show blue heelers, a type of cattle dog, damaged a patrol car at the time. Warrants revealed the deputy had to call for back up.
After the homeowner controlled the dogs, Robles’ body was found at the bottom of a steep embankment.
Animal control officers took the dogs to the Rockingham County Animal Shelter.
The dogs, who remain at the shelter, are in 11 cages. At least one appeared emaciated.
It costs $240 per day for the county to house the dogs, according to shelter director Kevin Baughn.
That means, that as of Wednesday, the county had spent $7,440 to house the dogs.
Daniel McCollum, the dogs’ owner received several citations from the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office after the attack. He declined requests for comment after the incident occurred.
McCollum received a $600 fine because 12 of the dogs had not been vaccinated for rabies, police records show.
He received a $150 fine for having six of his animals run at large. He received a second $150 fine for six of his dogs being a public nuisance.
The dogs were running free, in violation of the county’s leash laws.
Sheriff’s office spokesman Kevin Suthard denied comment on Robles’ case and would not permit an interview with animal control officers to discuss the county’s leash laws.
County attorney Robert Shaver did not return a request for comment Tuesday.
This wasn’t the first complaint McCollum has received about the dogs.
Monica Coachman, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Postal Service, said the agency was made aware that the dogs posed a potential threat to their employees.
“Within the past 18 months, the mail receptacle at this address was moved for the safety of our postal carrier, who is required to service the mailbox,” Coachman wrote in an email to the News & Record.
The mail receptacle has since been returned to its previous location, she said.
Coachman added that no dog bites have been reported to the postal service in the area around McCollum’s house.
In response to a public records request, the sheriff’s office stated that animal control has received only one call over the past three years, in October 2013. That call concerned two dogs that were missing.
With the sheriff’s office silent, it’s hard to say where the investigation stands.
The animal control ordinance says that if dogs are considered dangerous or vicious the department must dispose of the animals by humane euthanasia. If they did not cause serious injury or death, they can be given to an organization or person who meets specific requirements set by the Rockingham County health director.
The owner does have the right to appeal.
The Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office said the case remains under investigation.
(News Record - Dec 28, 2014)
Earlier:
No comments:
Post a Comment