Brevard: Sheriff arrest man for animal cruelty
The Brevard County Sheriff’s Office has arrested 18-year-old Joseph Tyler Pendergrass,
of Rockledge.
The Brevard County Sheriff’s Office responded to a local boarding facility on January 23, 2017.
The management team reported they had discovered suspected animal cruelty.
A small Shih Tuz dog was in severe pain with a significant leg injury. The dog was immediately taken to a local veterinarian for evaluation. The veterinarian determined the Shih Tuz had a broken leg.
The Facility immediately initiated an internal investigation to
determine what had occurred. As a result, the owner and management team reviewed
video surveillance footage. It showed the dog being abused by Joseph Tyler Pendergrass. He was a former employee of the facility.
The owner immediately contacted Law Enforcement after reviewing the video footage.
Investigation
A Brevard County Sheriff’s Office Animal Cruelty Investigator was called to investigate
the incident. A county judge issued a warrant for the arrest of Pendergrass for cruelty to animals.
“I want to be clear in stating and reassuring our community that the
owner, manager, and other staff members of the local boarding facility did absolutely
nothing wrong. In fact are heroes in my eyes for not only investigating what had
happened to this innocent pet, but in also reporting the crime and working closely with
our Animal Cruelty Unit to make sure that the offender is never around helpless animals
again.” Sheriff Ivey said.
Subsequently, Pendergrass surrendered to Agents in Orange County. He was
transported to the Orange County Jail pending extradition to Brevard County.
Anyone with information about this incident is asked to please contact the Brevard
County Sheriff’s Office Animal Cruelty Unit via the Sheriff’s Office Communications
Center.
The numbers are (321) 633-7162, or CRIMELINE at 1-800- 423-TIPS (8477), you can also visit
https://crimeline.org/, or text ‘crimeline’ plus your tip to CRIME (274637). All
information to CRIMELINE is confidential and you may be eligible for a reward.
