AR-News: (US) WVA man who starved his labrador to death arrested in Indiana

[Snugglezzz at aol.com]

West Virginia Man Who Allegedly Starved His Dog to Death Arrested in Indiana    
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    Almost the moment Hubert Wilmer walked in the front door at the Hooters 
in downtown Indianapolis, kitchen manager Jerry Bryant was certain he had 
previously met the restaurant's new manager-in-training. "Didn't we work together 
before?" Bryant asked Wilmer. "Maybe it was my twin brother," Wilmer joked back 
to the kitchen manager. The next afternoon, on October 10, it dawned on 
Bryant. He used to work with Wilmer at another restaurant. Bryant immediately 
reported this information to Terry Moberly, the area supervisor who had just hired 
Wilmer contingent on a background check from the home office. During the 
interview process, Moberly had already heard Wilmer talk his way out of two tricky 
situations—explaining why Wilmer had an employment gap on his resume and why 
he didn't have a driver's license—so the supervisor was not about to wait 
around for headquarters to report back on the still-pending background check. He 
typed in "Hubert Wilmer" into an Internet search engine. He got something. 
    

A West Virginia newspaper reported that Kanawha County authorities had issued 
an arrest warrant for a man named Hubert Wilmer for animal cruelty charges 
and for failing to appear in court. Moberly called the reporter who wrote the 
article and then spoke directly with the Kanawha County police. Based on the 
description that police provided of the suspect, Moberly was fairly certain that 
the Hubert Wilmer they wanted stood right there in his Hooters restaurant. As 
Moberly learned, the allegations in the case were disturbing. Wilmer was 
arrested in August 2002 for starving his pet dog Sunbear to death in Cross Lanes, 
West Virginia, just northwest of Charleston. Wilmer's former girlfriend 
discovered Sunbear when she entered the otherwise vacant townhouse that Wilmer had 
once occupied with the dog. When the year-and-a half old chocolate Labrador 
retriever was found, he weighed 25 pounds, a quarter of his normal weight. Kanawha 
County, West Virginia, humane officer Gene Fields reported that when Sunbear 
finally made his way out of the condominium, the dog staggered across the yard 
and rolled down a bank to a nearby creek to get a sip of water. He was rushed 
to the animal emergency clinic, where veterinarians tried to save him but 
couldn't. "I thought what I was looking at was a dead dog because all you could 
see was the bones," Fields reported. "He looked like a walking skeleton," a 
neighbor said. "It was the most sickening thing I have ever seen, and the dog had 
to be in there at least six weeks without food and water, a bare minimum." An 
area resident who had heard about Sunbear's plight visited the animal at the 
veterinary clinic just before he died. "I told him we loved him and we were 
very sorry that we did not hear his cries," she told reporters. "He put his head 
in my hand and licked my hand and looked at me so sadly." When word of this 
crime got out, The HSUS offered a reward for the arrest and conviction of the 
person or persons responsible for Sunbear's slow and painful death, then a 
misdemeanor under West Virginia's animal cruelty laws. (The state has since passed 
a felony-level animal cruelty law.) The reward led to the arrest of Wilmer, 
who then reportedly failed to appear for two court appearances. A warrant was 
issued for his arrest. After piecing the story together, Moberly got in his 
car, not exactly sure of his next move. Driving to the restaurant where Wilmer 
was working, Moberly pulled out his cell phone and contacted The HSUS to figure 
out what to do. HSUS congratulated Moberly on his diligent work and urged him 
to keep Wilmer occupied in the restaurant. Once at Hooters, Moberly sent 
Wilmer to "the garage," a place in the back of the restaurant, separate from the 
customers and staff. He told Wilmer to read training materials. In the meantime, 
HSUS urged humane officer Fields to touch base with the prosecutor's office—a 
request for extradition was needed in the next two hours. With an extradition 
request, Wilmer could be arrested in Indiana and taken to West Virginia where 
he would face charges for animal cruelty and failing to appear. The 
prosecutor's office agreed, and The HSUS got word to Moberly. To facilitate the arrest, 
Moberly spoke with an officer he found at Monument Circle in downtown 
Indianapolis. The officer was initially dubious that someone could be extradited for 
animal cruelty charges, but before Moberly knew it, there were four officers 
ready to drive to the restaurant and arrest Wilmer. While Moberly explained the 
situation to the wait staff and calmed their fears, two cops went in the back 
door and two went in the front of the restaurant. Police found Wilmer 
studying in the "garage" and quickly arrested him for animal cruelty. Although Wilmer 
denied everything, he was taken away in handcuffs. He was eventually 
transported to West Virginia where he is now being held in South Central Regional Jail 
in Kanawha County on $100,000 bond. A jury trial has been set for February 
23, 2004. Ann Chynoweth, counsel to The HSUS's Investigative Services, had 
nothing but praise for those who assisted in the Indianapolis arrest and 
extradition, including Moberly, the supervisor who showed so much resolve. "We can't 
help but be impressed with the team of people who came together to make this 
happen. Sunbear suffered a cruel and lonely death, but with these good people, 
hopefully we are on the road to getting this poor dog some justice." 



    

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