Virginia Beach, Va. – A Virginia Beach man has been arrested in the death of a 15-year-old female dog, police tell NewsChannel 3. They say the dog was found with a 10-foot industrial chain wrapped around its body.
On Sunday, February 17, 2013 an Animal Control Officer responded to the 1800 block of Blue Knob Road for a report of a deceased dog that had been found in a small body of water.
The officer arrived and found that the dog had a heavy chain wrapped around its mid-section.
The body was transported to the Virginia Beach Animal Care and Adoption Center where a necropsy was performed by the city’s veterinarian.
The exam revealed the dog was an older female, Shepherd mix, with a broken left mandible (jaw bone) and significant bruising around her mid-section caused by the heavy ten foot industrial chain.
According to Wayne P. Gilbert, II, Shelter Operations Supervisor/Spokesperson, Animal Control Officers initially did not have a lot of information to work with, and conducted a door to door canvas of the area.
The officers were attempting to locate the owner or anyone who may have information about the dog.
The officers were able to identify the dog’s owner.
Investigators learned that 15-year-old Hershey was choked and had a chain tied around her body.
Hershey’s body was dumped into a lake adjacent to her home shortly after Thanksgiving of 2012.
The suspect, 33-year-old Joshua P. Curry, of the 1800 block of Barkading Court in Virginia Beach, was arrested on Wednesday, February 27, 2013. He was charged with Felony Animal Cruelty and a misdemeanor charge of Failing to Cremate, Bury or Sanitarily Dispose of a Dead Animal. Curry was released on bond.
The case remains under investigation by the Department’s Animal Control Unit with Animal Control Officers Jane Cason and Morgan Hayes as lead investigators.
NewsChannel 3 will have updates on this story, starting First at Four.
