Poisoning dogs with sausages laced with paraquat - (Portland, OR - US) Crime Date: 07/03/2003
Case Status: Open
Reward: $15000.00
Case Updates: Available - Click Here
Abusers/Suspects:
*Suspect(s) Unknown - Need your help!
Case ReportPoisoned sausages placed in a park have apparently killed eight dogs in this usually pooch-friendly town amid a heated debate over whether dogs should be allowed in parks without a leash.
Autopsies indicated that someone laced the meat with the herbicide paraquat, veterinarians say. The poisonings began weeks after a round of local media reports dissecting the tensions surrounding the leash/no-leash issue in city parks.
Canine owners are on edge, certain that some lifelong dog-hater got sniffed one too many times by an unleashed pet, and decided to take revenge. They are packing fund-raisers around the city to contribute toward a reward for information leading to an arrest. So far, the take is $13,000 and counting.
The dogs who have died were all roaming leafy Laurelhurst Park, recently identified in a study by graduate students at Portland State University as the park generating the highest number of complaints about off-leash dogs.
The popular park has been almost deserted since word first spread about the poisonings, and the few dog owners who do show up keep their tethers tight.
Megan Premo was walking there Thursday with Phoenix, an Australian Shepherd mix, restraining the dog every time he strained toward a clutch of nearby squirrels.
"It's a shame I can't let him off the leash without him getting in some poisoned sausage" said Premo, 24, the leash wound securely around her wrist.
Those in favor of leash-free parks have reported threats and insults yelled at them from the leash-your-dog crowd while in parks.
Last month, the city council voted to spend $60,000 to enforce leash laws. The laws were ignored for years, angering those who leash their dogs and non-dog people, and spurring pro-leash advocates to launch a Web site, leashyourdog.com, for reporting free-roaming dogs.
The site includes candid spy photos of free-roaming dogs and their owners, arguments for leash laws and links to updates about the Laurelhurst poisonings.
The first sick dogs arrived at Dove Lewis Emergency Animal Hospital July 3 suffering from vomiting, diarrhea and mouth ulcers. Owners of the afflicted dogs said their pets had scarfed down something resembling a piece of pepperoni before they fell ill.
Police spokesman Henry Groepper said police had no suspects and no motive. But on Thursday, a waitress at the Lucky Lab, a canine-friendly bar holding a fund-raiser for the reward pot, fielded an anonymous call from a man saying the dog killings would spread to a second park. Case Updates
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Posted: May 29, 2004 - 10:22 AM
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17 dogs have been poisoned, all but 3 died. The reward is now up to $15,000.
Police have named a suspect in the case, but they don't have enough evidence to arrest him.
The investigation has found that tainted sausage treats laced with the herbicide Paraquat is responsible for the deaths of the dogs.
Police have received numerous tips about the owner of the website www.leashyourdog.com which was created before the dog poisoning started. The website is now shutdown. This man continues to be of interest to the police in regards to this case but police do not have enough evidence to charge him with the crime. He has previously been convicted for animal cruelty.
Records show the owner of the website to be Frank Keane, the address given was phony but the telephone number was not. The person paying the monthly bill for the website paid with money orders, under the same fake name, Frank Keane.
A Multnomah county employee who testified in opposition of the expansion of leash hours wrote down his real name and real address on the city record. When KATU TV called this person at work, they got voice mail that offered an alternate number to reach him. That number matches the one listed on the website registration for www.leashyourdog.com. This county employee has taken two polygraph test but the results are inconclusive. Police detectives believe he deliberately did things to foil the results. The suspect even admitted visiting a website that teaches people how to defeat the polygraph exam.
The man who police say is their main suspect has filed a 'notice of tort claim' saying the Portland Police provided KATU News with false and defamatory information. For now the police have suspended the case unless new information comes in.
The investigation found that he ran the website from his county work computer. He was placed on paid leave in November 2003 but returned to work on February 20th 2004 for violating the county's computer use policy. He was not fired but did receive a cut in pay.
The 8-month police investigation report shows that the police interviewed more than a dozen people of interest and have ruled out all but one person. |
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Posted: Jul 27, 2003 - 9:48 AM
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The death toll is up tp 12 dogs. A crew from Portland Parks and Recreation will made a thorough sweep of the park on July 15, 2003, beginning at 12:30 P.M.
Read more: KATU |
If you have any information on this case, contact:Detective William Crockett
Phone: 503-823-2177 References The Manchester Union LeaderThe Associated Press Donate Now
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