21 dogs dead, some decomposing - breeder charged - Bradford Township, PA

Sunday, Jun 10, 2007

County: McKean

Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Convicted

Defendant/Suspect: Cheryl Ann Magnotta

Case Updates: 5 update(s) available

Pennsylvania Law enforcement officials encountered a grisly scene when they found the decomposed bodies of as many as 20 dead Great Dane dogs at a Bradford Township home.

Bradford Township Police said the carcasses of approximately 20 Great Danes were found Thursday by a man who had gone in to clean a deserted home at 320 W. Corydon St. near the Dorothy Lane intersection.

A township officer said the home had been owned and occupied by Cheryl Magnatto, who had been a licensed Great Dane breeder in the past. Officials said Ms. Magnatto had not lived at the house for the past several months as the home had been repossessed by a lending agency.

Police have been attempting to locate Cheryl Magnatto.

They said the carcasses of the large dogs were discovered by Jack Buckles who had been hired to go to the rundown home on Thursday to begin cleaning and restoring the property so it could be put on the market.

Mr. Buckles and Tony Danias, McKean County humane officer, were at the home again and described what they had seen.

Mr. Buckles said that when he went to a small building at the back of the property he found the bodies of two dead Great Danes enclosed in a small room likely used as a kennel. He said the discovery was upsetting to him as he has a number of retired greyhound dogs that he has rescued and cares for.

"They had no way of getting out because the door leading to the kennel was nailed shut, Mr. Buckles said.

After finding the animals, Mr. Buckles said he contacted Mr. Danias, who in turn contacted the township police. Officers arrived at the scene with a search warrant.

Donning protective clothing and masks, the township officers and others proceeded to look around the property. During the search they found the bodies and bones of adult and younger dogs in two boarded-up back buildings used as kennels, in shallow graves behind the buildings and even under old tarps and rugs on the ground.

"Some of them (search team members) were running out in the bushes and were gagging," Mr. Buckles said.

Mr. Danias added, "We tried to gather up everything but there is still a few pieces of bone here and there. It was pathetic."

He said the smell of the decomposition likely went unnoticed by neighbors, as well as occupants at the nearby University of Pittsburgh at Bradford, as the bodies were covered by lime, soil, debris and even dog feces.

Mr. Danias said the back of the property borders on land owned by Pitt-Bradford - the main campus is across the West Branch of the Tunungwant Creek.

He noted that he had cited Ms. Magnatto in the past for neglect of the dogs and he believes she let her kennel license run out.

Officials at the scene said the dogs were in varying degrees of decomposition, with some believed to have died as long ago as nine months to as recently as three months ago.

A police officer said the investigation is continuing and charges are forthcoming in the matter.

He said all of the bodies were removed from the property and some were kept for evidence. In addition, a local veterinarian is examining a couple of the bodies to determine the cause of death.

He said the charges will likely include cruelty to animals for possible starvation and neglect.

Case Updates

A woman who pleaded guilty to six counts of animal cruelty after the carcasses of 21 dogs were found on her former property was credited with time served and sentenced Thursday to a year of probation. Cheryl Magnotta, 59, was charged after a real estate agent found two dead Great Danes on her foreclosed property in Bradford in June. Authorities said a subsequent search of the property yielded the remains of the other dogs under tarps and rugs, and in kennels, boarded-up buildings and shallow graves. Police said it appeared the animals had starved to death. Magnotta pleaded guilty last week. On Thursday, McKean County District Judge John Yoder sentenced her to six to 23 1/2 months in prison. She was credited for 198 days time served and released on parole for the rest of her sentence. Magnotta was also sentenced to a year of probation, according to the McKean County Court Administrator's office. She was ordered to surrender her kennel license and undergo a mental health evaluation. Magnotta had a registered kennel license as recently as 2001 and was known to breed dogs, police have said.

Source: Philly.Com - Jan 24, 2008 Update posted on Jan 24, 2008 - 5:06PM

A former Bradford woman pleaded guilty Thursday in McKean County Court to six counts of cruelty to animals for the deaths of 21 Great Danes on her West Corydon Street property in 2007. Cheryl Magnotta, 59, had been charged with 21 counts of animal cruelty and 44 counts of scattering rubbish. She entered into a plea agreement at a pre-trial conference Thursday; she was scheduled to stand trial on Monday. District Attorney John Pavlock explained, "In June of 2007, the defendant had in her care and responsibility 21 Great Dane dogs. She had a business or hobby of having kennels. She failed to properly care for the animals, failed to give them proper food, water, shelter, medical treatment and care. Because of her failure to provide proper care for these animals, they suffered and perished." As a condition of the plea agreement, Magnotta agreed to plead guilty to six counts of cruelty to animals which encompassed all 21 Great Danes found dead on her property, according to her attorney, Public Defender Ron Langella. "There's no specific sentencing recommendation," Langella said. For each of the six counts, the sentencing guideline range is probation to one month each. Magnotta has 189 days of credit for time served and 30 days additional credit for good behavior, Langella said, adding she has credit for about seven months of jail time already. Her sentencing was set for 9:30 a.m. Jan. 24. Charges were filed against Magnotta after an agent for a real estate agency which had foreclosed on Magnotta's 329 W. Corydon St. home went to the house to clean up the property. While checking the property, he found what appeared to be the decomposing remains of two domestic dogs in a kennel of an outbuilding on the property. The dogs appeared to have died from starvation. The agent called the McKean County humane officer, who requested assistance from police and code enforcement. Officers found an open tarp lying a few feet away from an outbuilding with the bones of another dog, along with tarps and rugs covering up other animal remains, according to court records. Additional kennels were found and searched. They contained no food or water dishes, but had remains of dogs in various states of decomposition, the records indicate. Remains were found inside boarded-up buildings, in shallow graves and under old carpets on the property. Police also found multiple bags of dog feces scattered around the property and onto an adjacent property, the records read.

Source: The Bradford Era - Jan 18, 2008 Update posted on Jan 18, 2008 - 3:56PM

The woman who used to own the McKean County property where 21 Great Dane carcasses were found last month was arrested by police in Lackawanna County. Cheryl Ann Magnotta, 59, formerly of Bradford, was taken into custody on a warrant for 21 counts of animal cruelty Wednesday evening by the Newton Township police department. She was returned Thursday to McKean County, where she was arraigned and remanded to the county prison on $150,000 bail. It was not immediately known if she had an attorney. Bradford Township police issued a statewide bulletin for Magnotta because they could not find her after filing the charges last month. Two of the dead dogs were found June 12 by a real estate agent who was on the foreclosed property. The agent called authorities who got a search warrant and found the remains of more than 20 dogs, police said. Police have said it appeared the dogs were starved to death but results of tests to determine that have not been made public.

Source: PennLive - July 12, 2007 Update posted on Jul 16, 2007 - 6:13AM

A warrant and statewide "be on the lookout" bulletin have been issued for a woman wanted in an incident where the remains of 21 Great Danes were found last week at a West Corydon Street residence. Bradford Township Police said Friday that Cheryl Ann Magnotta, 59, formerly of 320 W. Corydon St., was supposedly seen Friday in the Bradford area. "However, she's gone," an officer said. The BOLO means law enforcement agencies throughout the state will be seeking to apprehend Magnotta. According to court records at District Judge Rich Luther's office, Magnotta is facing charges of 21 counts of cruelty to animals, third-degree misdemeanors; and 41 counts of scattering rubbish, summary offenses, for the incident. According to an affidavit of probable cause for the warrant issued for Magnotta's arrest, at 3:20 p.m. on June 12, police were requested to assist McKean County Humane Officer Tony Danias at 320 W. Corydon St. in Bradford Township in reference to a possible cruelty to animals case. Upon arrival, police met Danias along with Bradford Township Code Enforcement Officer Merle Silvis; the current property owners, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in care of Ocwen Federal Bank; and the owners' agent, Jack Buckles of Rocking Horse Realty in Smethport, who was sent to clean up the property. Buckles told police that upon checking the property for occupancy and preparation for sale, he found what appeared to be remains of two domestic dogs in a kennel area of an out building located on the property. The bodies, which were in a state of decomposition, appeared to have died from starvation lying inside the kennel, where the owner, believed to be Magnotta, left the remains, according to the affidavit. Buckles had said the door to the building was nailed shut so the dogs had no way of getting out. The affidavit stated that an open blue tarp was lying about five feet away from the out building with the bones of what appeared to be another domestic dog. A skull was lying adjacent to the tarp. Police noted several tarps and rugs lying about the property in a position that appeared to be covering other possible remains of animals, as well as other out buildings that appeared to have had additional kennels. Police also noted the property had a very strong dead animal odor and the entire property was in disarray. Several disassembled kennels are also located on the property, according to the affidavit. Police had said Magnotta was a known breeder/owner of Great Danes. She reportedly won a Great Dane Club of America competition with Great Danes she owned in 2004. According to the affidavit, Magnotta did have a registered kennel license as of 2001 under the name Swift Dane Kennel. Bradford Township Police have observed Great Danes in the care and custody of Magnotta on numerous occasions over the past seven years at the residence. Magnotta was last known to be at 320 W. Corydon St. on June 11 with a 26-foot U-Haul moving truck, rented from Olean, N.Y., to move items from the residence since the property was under foreclosure by U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, according to the affidavit. Danias reportedly cited Magnotta, who police had said was believed to be a native of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area, in the past for neglect of dogs. The affidavit stated at 9:46 a.m. on June 14, police obtained a search warrant for the home, outbuildings and the enclosed area of land around the dwelling of the 320 W. Corydon St. property. At 10:32 a.m., police, along with Danias, executed the search warrant and found the remains of 21 Great Danes. The bodies were in various forms of decomposition upon the property, both inside kennels and outside throughout the property. The decomposed bodies located outside the structures were both wrapped and covered with blue plastic tarps and old carpet remnants. Police noted no food or water dishes inside or around the kennel areas, according to the affidavit. It was reported that the dogs, including adult and younger dogs, were believed to have died in a period of three to nine months ago and were covered by lime, soil, debris and even dog feces. Police found documents relating to the ownership, breeding, kennel license and other various records pertaining to raising of domestic dogs in the search, according to the affidavit. Police found additional tarps and carpet remnants at the residence matching that of the ones used. Police located 32 plastic bags of dog feces, which were scattered throughout the property of 320 W. Corydon St., as well as property adjacent to the north owned by another person, according to the affidavit. Police said a few of the dog carcasses were sent to a local veterinarian for autopsies, and the rest are being kept as evidence. Police did not say Friday if results have come back on the autopsies.

Source: The Bradford Era - June 22, 2007 Update posted on Jun 24, 2007 - 3:37PM

The former owner of a foreclosed property where more than 20 Great Dane carcasses were found earlier this month was charged with animal cruelty. Cheryl Ann Magnotta, 59, of Clearfield County, was charged with 21 counts of animal cruelty, each a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in prison, and 41 summary counts of scattering rubbish on the property, Bradford police said Friday. Police issued a warrant for Ms. Magnotta and asked the public to be on the lookout for her. Ms. Magnotta had a registered kennel license as recently as 2001 and was known to breed the dogs, police said. Authorities believe the dogs died three to nine months ago.

Source: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - June 24, 2007 Update posted on Jun 24, 2007 - 3:03PM

References

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