Prosecutors say in a set of indictments handed up late last month that Jason Gentry, 35, of Salem, assisted a Long Island, New York, man in illegally “cropping” the ears of four puppies using regular household scissors and duct tape, without anesthesia.
One of the four puppies whose ears were cropped subsequently died, prosecutors say.
That brings to four the total of known dog deaths attributed to Gentry and the New York man, Dominick Donovan, 51.
Both will be in court later this month to be arraigned on the indictments, which will move their cases from Lynn District Court to Salem Superior Court.
Donovan, a breeder who touted his “Donovan pinscher” dogs as superior guard dogs in online postings, is facing six counts of animal cruelty at his arraignment on Jan. 14.
Gentry, who lists addresses in both Salem and Swampscott, is facing a dozen counts of animal cruelty, as well as a charge of operating an unlicensed kennel in the city of Lynn, where investigators found dogs living in squalid conditions last summer. He’s due in court for arraignment on Jan. 15, according to the case docket.
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| 5 Station Road in Salem is the home of Jason Gentry, who is accused of animal cruelty in dog deaths. DAVID LE/Staff photo |
Investigators looking into the deaths of two puppies found in trash bags behind a Revere gas station last summer discovered that the two men had been involved in a deal for Gentry to breed and train the “Donovan pinschers.”
The two later had a falling out over money.
During the dispute, one dog, Wotan, was allegedly given Valium and then driven back to Donovan’s home in New York. The dog was discovered to be dead when it arrived.
The indictments charge that while in Lynn, Donovan used cables tied to the collars of two dogs, Livid and Gotti, and then hung them by those cables until they died. The indictments say Gentry was present for those deaths.
The fourth dog that died, after the improper ear cropping, was described as a female “Donovan pinscher” puppy.
Prosecutors say in the indictments that Donovan did the ear cropping while Gentry held the puppies.
Each of the animal cruelty counts carries a penalty of up to seven years in state prison.
Gentry, who had worked as a civil constable in Salem, at one time was under consideration for the position of animal control officer in the town of Danvers, and was even given a town-owned vehicle and two-way radio, officials confirmed last year.
However, officials learned of his alleged involvement in a New York-based pill-trafficking ring and opted not to give him the position. The drug charges against Gentry were later dropped after evidence in the case was suppressed, because New York/New Jersey Port Authority officials refused to turn over investigatory materials in the case.
(Newbury Port News - Jan 6, 2016)
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