The Greene County, MO Sheriff's Office is asking for the public's help in identifying the person or persons responsible for a recent animal abuse case.
On the morning of January 11, Greene County deputies responded to the Fair Grove Veterinary Clinic in response to a dog that had been severely burned. A citizen had found the dog on the side of the road in the 3500 block of E. Farm Rd. 66 near Fellows Lake. Greene County Sheriff Jim Arnott said the dog died of the burn injuries that night.
"This is an alarming case because this dog was not only dropped off here but was bound so it couldn't get away from the fire," Arnott said. "So, we know that there's a strong intention, and this community does not accept animal abuse and animal cruelty."
The fire spread to part of the field where the dog was placed.
Arnott said the dog managed to drag itself out of the burn area to the side of the road where the passerby saw it and stopped to help.
The female dog was medium size, appeared to be part heeler and had one blue eye and one eye that was brown and blue. It's believed to have been a year or less old.
Arnott wants anyone with any information or possible video from the area to contact his office. And he hopes someone will recognize the dog from its description and come forward.
$16,000 in reward money has been collected by concerned citizens for information that leads to the arrest of those responsible.
"People are outraged about this incident," Arnott said, and they want us to get to the bottom of it." He added that the Greene County Sheriff's Office has zero tolerance for animal abuse.
Anyone with information is asked to call the sheriff's office's crime tip hotline at 417 829-6230 or go to greenecountymo.gov/sheriff and submit a crime tip. You can do so anonymously.
The charges the suspect could face if identified include animal abuse, which is a Class E felony and carries a penalty of up to four years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine and Arson in the 3rd degree – a Class A misdemeanor, which could get a suspect a year in prison and a several thousand dollar fine, Arnott said.