Anthony Sather, 25, 29569 144th St. NW, Baldwin Township, is being held in the Sherburne County Jail on felony charges of mistreating and torturing an animal, causing death.
The criminal acts appear to have taken place in October 2014 and came to light after the December 2014 discovery of three videos that capture Sather severely beating a 3- to 4-year-old husky Shiba Inu and eventually shooting the dog with a handgun.
According to a criminal complaint filed in Sherburne County District Court:
The first video shows Sather activating a camera, closing a garage door at his residence, opening a dog kennel, dragging the dog in front of the camera and beating it repeatedly.
Sather punched the dog in the head multiple times with a closed fist, lifted the dog over his head, and slammed it down on the concrete garage floor multiple times. Sather also kicked the dog several times, the complaint states.
The video depicts the dog making multiple attempts to run away, but each time Sather dragged the dog back in front of the camera to continue the beating, the report states.
Toward the end of the video, Sather allegedly gets close to the camera, smiles into it and states, “This ain’t done yet,” and then licks his lips.
The second video depicts the dog being repeatedly kicked.
The third and final video shows Sather holding a silver pistol and the dog laying in a grassy area. Sather is heard yelling at the dog and pointing the pistol at the animal. The video ends with the sound of gunshots.
Sather was in a relationship with the daughter of the dog’s owner. The daughter and the dog were residing with Sather in the Baldwin Township home of Sather’s mother.
On Oct. 2, 2014, the dog went missing and an extensive search ensued. In the days that followed, dog was found and retrieved by Sather, who stated that the dog ran away upon arriving home and opening the car door.
On Oct. 9, 2014, the dog was found deceased in a ditch on Sherburne County Road 1, just south of the Sather residence, according to the criminal complaint.
On Dec. 18, 2014, the videos showing the abuse were found on Sather’s home computer. The videos were recorded on a cellphone and turned over to the Sherburne County Sheriff’s Office.
A search warrant for Sather’s residence was obtained and executed on Jan. 5. Sather was home at the time of the search and directed investigators to a night stand in his bedroom where a .45-caliber handgun was found. The gun matched the gun in the video in which the dog was shot, the report states.
Also in the night stand was a pill bottle containing 300 Valium pills, according to the complaint. Also located in Sather’s bedroom was a mini refrigerator containing two gallon bags of marijuana containing 98.45 grams of the drug, the complaint states.
Also found at the residence were the dog’s collar and six other weapons.
In addition to the animal cruelty charge, Sather was charged with two counts of felony drug possession.
A Facebook page has been set up in honor of the dog "Justice for Draco".
(ECM Publishers - Jan 12, 2015)
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