The Kleberg County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a Wisconsin-based animal rescue that apparently has a Kingsville federal police agent’s dog and retired K9 partner and won’t give it back.
“We want our dog back,” agent Brian Buchanan said.
The local district attorney might help him do it. Once the sheriff’s office investigation into American Belgian Malinois Rescue’s adoption of Buchanan’s dog, Kleberg County D.A. John Hubert will get the case and determine if anything about this case broke the law.
“In general, if you have property that belongs to somebody else, even though you may have gotten it legally, if there has been no legal transfer of title, you don’t get to keep it,” Hubert said.
Buchanan says ABMR is illegally keeping his 11-year-old Belgian Malinois named Endy. The dog got spooked by New Year’s Eve fireworks, ran off, and ended up in the Kingsville Animal Shelter. After waiting out the three day waiting period mandated by state law, ABMR took possession of Endy. The group has said little since, even keeping Endy’s location a secret.
“I was told he’s in a safe place receiving some vet care,” Buchanan said. “They would not tell me where he was at.”
Hubert wouldn’t say if he thinks he’ll end up charging ABMR with any crimes, because he’s yet to receive the case from the sheriff’s office.
“We’ve got a pet owner that probably loves his animal, and we’ve got an animal rescue group that’s only trying to do what’s best for the animal, and they’re at loggerheads at this point,” Hubert said. “So what we have to do is figure out if a law’s been broken from the facts and then decide where to go from there.”
