A bloody shooting in California this week left at least 80 animals dead and drove neighbors to safety in the middle of the night, officials said.
The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office arrested a Salinas man, Vicente Joseph Arroyo, after he fired multiple weapons into a vineyard in Prunedale over a three-hour period Tuesday. said in a news release. Prunedale is an unincorporated community in Monterey County, about 100 miles south of San Francisco.
Just before 3:30 a.m. Tuesday, the sheriff’s office responded to a call of multiple shots fired, and soon issued a shelter-in-place order for residents within a five-mile radius.
“Weapons of various calibers could be heard firing in a very dark and densely vegetated area,” the news release said. “This made it difficult for deputies to immediately locate the person or persons responsible for firing the weapons.”
Officers from multiple agencies responded to the scene, and by sunrise officers located the suspect and the crashed vehicle on the road in the vineyard.
After Mr. Arroyo, 39, was taken into custody without incident, authorities found a cache of weapons, including multiple long rifles, shotguns, handguns and illegal assault weapons.
Pictures from the scene Posted on social media A large amount of ammunition and what appeared to be at least one bulletproof vest were recovered by the sheriff’s office.
About 80 animals were killed in the shooting spree, officials found, including miniature horses, goats, rabbits, guinea pigs, chickens, ducks and birds. Mr. Arroyo lived in a trailer next to the property where the animals were killed, Cmdr. Andres Rosas, spokesman for the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office, told the San Francisco Chronicle.
While some of the animals initially survived, they later succumbed to the severity of their injuries, officials said.
Mr. Arroyo was booked into the Monterey County Jail on charges of aggravated negligence, animal cruelty, unlawful possession of an assault weapon, vandalism, criminal threats and willful discharge of a firearm along with criminal possession of a firearm. His bail was set at $50,000.
The sheriff’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday, including questions about whether there was a clear motive.
Jason Maynard, a neighbor, recalls the overnight chaos, tells TV station KSBW And other local news outlets that after hearing gunfire, he told his wife and child to get on the ground.
“It’s a horrible scene,” Commander Rosas told the news station. “We are very fortunate that no lives were lost.”
Mr Rosas said there was no information to indicate the suspect was looking for anyone in particular and it appeared animals were the target.
“I’ve been doing this for over 24 years,” he said, “and no, unfortunately I’ve never seen an animal lose its life.”
Post California man arrested after killing at least 80 animals in shooting spree appeared first New York Times.