PENNSYLVANIA -- A man charged last month with shooting four of his neighbor's piglets in Lowhill Township told police he shot the animals because they had been repeatedly causing damage to his yard and property, according to Lehigh County Court records..
Richard William Anthony Jr., 45, of the 5000 block of Bluebird Drive in Lowhill Township is charged with cruelty to animals. State police said the four piglets — valued at more than $2,800 — were shot Oct. 18.
The 70-pound piglets were owned by Todd Hedrick, who told police that when he arrived at his home on Bluebird Drive, he found his piglets had escaped their enclosure. He later found a piglet with a gunshot wound to its leg and a second pig that had been shot in the abdomen.
Police said the pig that had been shot in the abdomen was found with its intestines hanging outside. The piglet appeared to be "in distress and suffering" and was put down by a state trooper.
According to court records:
Anthony's wife, Lisa Marie Yandersits, called police around 6:25 p.m. and said her husband had shot piglets that belonged to their neighbor.
Hedrick told police the piglets were being raised for slaughter and clients had already placed deposits on them. Because the animals were shot, Hedrick was not able sell them.
In an interview with police, Anthony admitted shooting the animals, although he said he first fired a warning shot to try and scare the piglets. When the pigs remained, Anthony said he fired four more shots at them.
Anthony and his wife loaded up two of the dead piglets and "dumped" them on the side of Mountain Road, police said.
Anthony said Hedrick's piglets had been causing damage to his yard and property and told police it had been a "reoccurring issue for the past several months."
Anthony told police that earlier that day, the pigs had wandered onto his property and he was able to chase them away but they returned 30 minutes later.
After the piglets were killed, the Lehigh Valley IronPigs baseball team said they would replace Hedrick's lost livestock.
(McCall.com - Jan 2, 2015)
No comments:
Post a Comment