Fingerprints Left On Tape Used To Bind Small Dog's Feet And Mouth Led To Arrest

Feb 28, 2019 by apost team

A Missouri man is behind bars after he bound a dog with electrical tape and tossed it on the side of a rural road in Jefferson County. Fortunately for the dachshund, he was eventually spotted by a Jefferson County Sheriff's deputy. The dog's mouth was taped shut, its legs were taped together, it was nearly frozen to death, and it appeared to have a concussion. 

The Sheriff's deputy rushed the dog, whom he named "Jimmy," to a nearby animal hospital. The deputy took a picture of Jimmy and posted it on social media in hopes of finding the dog's owners.

One woman recognized the pooch as her missing dog "Flick." Katie Kofron said to Jefferson County Sheriff's deputy her 13-year-old dachshund disappeared from her backyard. She was sure the dog had been stolen. Flick never left the yard, and there was no way he could have escaped. Kofron said Flick has a sensitive stomach and has had trouble keeping weight on since his best dog friend passed away.

Kofron provided a copy of Flick's medical records to prove he was her dog, but there were still unanswered questions. Who took Flick, and why did they bound the poor dog and leave him for dead? The deputy who found Jimmy/Flick wanted answers to those questions. He enlisted the help of two department detectives to check the electrical tape for fingerprints.

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The detectives didn't expect to find much, but they ran a latent fingerprint they extracted from the electrical tape through the criminal database. Much to their surprise, they found a positive match. It's hard to imagine hurting an innocent animal. Poor Jimmy/Flick was surely terrified throughout his ordeal, but justice will be served. Detectives now know the name of the vile human who terrorized this sweet dachshund: Paul Garcia.

Paul Garcia is a 39-year-old felon from Barnhart, Missouri. Garcia claims he found the dog under his truck and thought it was spying on him for the police. While Jimmy/Flick wasn't doing surveillance for the police, Garcia had reason to be nervous. The felon was in possession of a firearm, a violation of his parole. Paul Garcia has been charged with felony animal cruelty and armed criminal action. Animal lovers from around the nation are urging the Missouri justice system to give Garcia the maximum sentence allowable by law.

Jimmy/Flick was returned to his owner and is recovering at home. The animal hospital that saved Jimmy/Flick shared a video of the dog being reunited with his owner. They warned viewers that even though Jimmy/Flick was elated to see his owner, he didn't act as excited as a dog normally would. The poor little guy has been through so much, and he just wanted to be held by Katie Kofron.

The Jefferson County Sheriff's Department also released a statement upon Jimmy/Flick's release. They wanted to commend Deputy Keith Smith for finding the distressed dog and saving him. It's estimated that Jimmy/Flick spent more than 12 hours alone and freezing in a ditch on the side of the road. If it wasn't for Deputy Smith's attention to detail, the dog would have been impossible to spot. The Jefferson County Sheriff's Department also wanted to thank detectives Nick Schuenemann and Lee Morris for spending hours extracting the print that resulted in the arrest of Paul Garcia.

Katie Kofron was overwhelmed by the support of people from around the country when they heard Jimmy/Flick's story. Many tried to donate money, but Kofron urged them to donate to an animal shelter or adopt a pet themselves instead. Kofron apparently liked Flick's new name. She started a Facebook page called "Jimmy the Dachshund" to keep everyone updated on the dog's recovery.

What do you think of this rescue story? We are so glad that this story had a happy end. Pass this heartwarming story to your friends and family!