Two people have been arrested on charges they dumped five dogs near Interstate 78 in Bethel Township last week.
Township police said Tuesday that Daniel Vasquez Jr., 39, of Sinking Spring and Emilee Cybart, 23, formerly of Duncannon, Perry County, have been charged with aggravated cruelty to animals, neglect of animals and unsworn falsification to authorities. Cybart was also charged with possessing dogs that were unlicensed and without rabies vaccines.
They were awaiting arraignment Tuesday night.
According to police:
The investigation began when the Berks County Communications Center received a 911 call Friday at 12:31 a.m. from Vasquez, reporting that he was passing by and saw abandoned dogs in the area of 70 Court Street in Bethel.
An officer arrived at 12:38 a.m. and found five dogs abandoned, four of which were running loose just a few hundred feet from I-78. One dog was tied to a “No Parking” sign.
The dogs appeared to have been poorly cared for.
The officer controlled three of the dogs until about 4 a.m. With assistance from the public, particularly through Berks Dog Search on Facebook, the dogs were picked up to be temporarily housed.
The other two dogs had run off and were struck and killed by vehicles on I-78, near where they had been initially abandoned.
With further help from the public, the two dead dogs and the three living dogs were transported to the Animal Rescue League of Berks County, which assisted with the investigation.
Location data obtained through the 911 call placed Vasquez at the scene.
Following up on tips from the public, two dog crates that had held the dogs before they were abandoned were found discarded along Route 419 in Marion Township.
Additional tips identified the dogs’ owner as Cybart. She and Vasquez had been trying to rehome the dogs because Cybart had lost her housing.
Investigators determined Cybart had been staying at a motel near Duncannon until she was evicted.
Police reviewed surveillance footage recorded late Thursday from the motel that shows Vasquez and Cybart loading dog crates and dogs into a white cargo van.
Police obtained surveillance footage from other locations near where the dogs had been abandoned that shows a white cargo van exiting I-78 onto Court Street in Bethel Township at 12:28 a.m.
Additional surveillance footage consistent with the location of Vasquez’s phone when he called the communications center shows a white cargo van passing eastbound through the 8900 block of Old Route 22 at 12:32 a.m.
While returning to his residence, the dog crates were discarded along the road.
Surveillance footage at 1:09 a.m. shows a white cargo van eastbound in the 4600 block of Penn Avenue in Lower Heidelberg Township, near Vasquez’s residence.
On Saturday, Vasquez and Cybart provided voluntary written and signed statements to police following voluntary interviews. Investigators determined both of their written statements to be false.
On Tuesday, police obtained arrest warrants from District Judge Kim Bagenstose.
With the assistance of police from Spring and Lower Heidelberg townships as well as humane police officers from the Animal Rescue League, Vasquez and Cybart were taken into custody without incident about 5 p.m.
Township police said they are grateful for the outpouring of tips and support as the investigation progressed, particularly through the engagement of the animal community on Berks Dog Search. They also thanked the Animal Rescue League for its assistance.