Florida: Okeechobee man, Robert Thompson, 20, charged with animal cruelty after dog dies

FLORIDA -- An Okeechobee man is facing animal cruelty charges after three dogs in his care recently were found being kept in extremely poor conditions, authorities said.

Robert Edward Thompson, a West Palm Beach native now living in Okeechobee, was arrested Tuesday by the Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Office. One of the dogs died before a veterinarian could treat the animal, the sheriff’s office said.

Thompson, 20, was being held at the Okeechobee County Jail Wednesday in lieu of $7,500 bail.

Investigators from Okeechobee Animal Control responded to Thompson’s address on Northwest 68th Street last Friday after receiving an anonymous tip that the dogs had been left without care for weeks.

The investigator found two dogs confined in a  small pen and the third chained to the barn behind the residence, according to probable-cause arrest affidavit made public Wednesday.

The dogs had no food and their drinking water contained large amounts of algae, the affidavit said.  The animals reportedly were dehydrated and malnourished.

A deputy made contact with Thompson and questioned him. Thompson’s responses were redacted from the arrest affidavit.

(Palm Beach Post - Feb 18, 2016)