MARATHON, Fla. – A 69-year-old Marathon man is facing an animal cruelty charge after authorities said a “dog had been locked in a vehicle for several hours with no food or water and later died.”
Monroe County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested Edmund Christopher James on Tuesday, a news release states.
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MCSO spokesperson Adam Linhardt said deputies and Florida Keys SPCA staff went to a home on Aviation Boulevard following the death of the 5-month-old chocolate labrador retriever named Jasmine.
They were there to investigate “potentially dangerous living conditions” at the home, Linhardt said.
“James had been previously warned to improve living conditions at the residence, which were deplorable with abundant rotting food, exposed human/animal waste, and garbage left strewn about, creating an unhealthy environment,” he said.
Online records show that James was later released from the MCSO Key West jail facility on a $7,500 bond.
He’s set to be arraigned July 29.