5 dogs killed in arson fire
Auburn, AL (US)Incident Date: Thursday, Feb 16, 2012
County: Lee
Charges: Felony CTA, Felony Non-CTA
Disposition: Alleged
Alleged: Hal David Moore
Case Updates: 1 update(s) available
An Auburn man is facing eight felony charges after investigators say he forced his way into a home and set a fire which killed five dogs.
Auburn Police arrested Hal David Moore, 23, and lodged charges of second-degree arson, third-degree burglary, first-degree criminal mischief and five counts of first-degree cruelty to an animal.
Police went to a residence on the 2700 block of Lee Road 12 regarding a suspicious incident complaint. Police found the door forced open and smoke damage from an apparent fire.
Officers found several damaged items and that a fire had been started in the bedroom.
Five small dogs in the residence appeared to have succumbed to smoke inhalation.
Moore was taken to the Lee County Detention Facility where bond was set at $18,500.
Case UpdatesPolice say an Auburn fire fighter has been arrested in the city he serves and protects. 23-year-old Hal Moore faces numerous charges including arson and animal cruelty after detectives say he set his ex-girlfriends trailer on fire, killing five puppies inside.
Lisa Carroll, a friend of the victim, leads us to where police found the puppies, lifeless in a bathtub. The image is disturbing.
Four perfect silhouettes, created by ash and soot, outline where the animals died. Police say the cocker spaniel mother is okay. She was let out of this cage, but a fifth puppy was found dead inside it.
Investigators say the animals died of smoke inhalation when Moore set his ex-girlfriends bed on fire.
"I guess it was jealousy, jealousy is the only thing it could be," said the victim's uncle, Harold Brown.
"I can't believe it, he's a great guy. I liked him, we all liked him. We thought she had a winner, it's just sad apparently she can push some buttons," said Brown.
Police say sometime Thursday, while his ex-girlfriend and her small child were away, Moore broke into her trailer off of Cox street, ransacked it, smashed her TV, then set her bed on fire.
"I'm not sure what set him off, but he did get mad the other night when we ran into him," said the victim's friend, Lisa Carroll.
Carroll says her friend dated Moore for about a year, but she broke up with him months ago believing he had cheated.
"The police said whoever did it knew about fire, and he knew something about fire," said Brown.
Moore, a student at Auburn University was an Auburn firefighter through the student program. Police will not say if Moore has confessed, but friends say he called the victim after he made bond.
"I know he did call her when he got out of jail she won't say what he said, but he called her and apologized and said he didn't know what he was thinking," said Carroll.
Moore faces arson, criminal mischief charges and five counts of first degree animal cruelty.
"I'm going to have to say that he did not intend to hurt those puppies, maybe he didn't know they were back there, but when you look at that tub and see those silhouettes, I mean I like dogs more than I like most people, it's sad," said Brown.
Moore's status with the Auburn Fire Department is unknown, Fire Chief Lee Lamar refused to comment on the case saying it was an internal, personnel matter that he could not comment on. | Source: wtvm.com - Feb 17, 2012
Update posted on Feb 17, 2012 - 11:06PM |
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