Monterey County sheriff’s detectives seized multiple weapons and ammunition from the house of a man suspected of killing 81 animals, the office reported Sept. 4.
The deputies requested help from the Monterey County SWAT team and drones from the Seaside Fire Department and Gonzales Police Department.
A drone helped locate a suspect near a crashed vehicle near a vineyard on Avery Lane, the Sheriff’s Office said.
SWAT officers approached the suspect in an armored vehicle and were able to take him into custody without incident, the police force said.
Vincent Joseph Arroyo, 39, of Salinas, about 100 miles south of San Francisco, was arrested at the scene and booked into county jail on five felonies, including willful discharge of a firearm with gross negligence, cruelty to animals, willful possession of an assault weapon, vandalism of $400 or more, criminal threats, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Once the scene was secured, authorities allegedly discovered that the suspect had killed about 81 animals over a three-hour period, including miniature horses, goats, rabbits, guinea pigs, chickens, ducks, and other types of birds.
Some animals survived and were taken to be euthanized because of the severity of their wounds, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Multiple rifles, shotguns, and handguns, including an illegal assault weapon, were found at the scene, along with many loaded and empty magazines.
A day after the arrest, detectives with the sheriff’s office served a search warrant at Arroyo’s home. Once inside, they seized seven more weapons and more than 2,000 rounds of ammunition, the police force said.
Two of the weapons were an un-serialized assault rifle and handgun, considered “ghost guns,” the sheriff’s office said.
The total number of firearms seized during the investigation is 15.
The additional firearms found at the location resulted in the judge raising Arroyo’s bail to $1 million. He remained in custody in the county jail Friday.
