A New York animal sanctuary owner is dealingwith a felony charge after authorities state cows from a close-by beef farm wanderedoff onto her residentialorcommercialproperty and she declined to return them to their owner.
Tracy Murphy, president and creator of Asha’s Farm Sanctuary in Newfane, a little town 38 miles north of Buffalo near Lake Ontario, was jailed Tuesday and charged with third-degree grand larceny, the New York State Police reported.
McKee Farm owner Scott Gregson informed USA TODAY that last month, 2 of his beef cows inexplicably escaped his pasture, which is enclosed by an electric barb-wire fence.
“I still to this day wear’t understand how they got out,” Gregson, 43, stated Wednesday. “The fence is in excellent shape and the gates were all locked.”
Gregson, whose residentialorcommercialproperty is about a half mile from Murphy’s animal sanctuary, said he foundout his animals were on the lam after getting a phone call from the SPCA, who informed him his cows were at the sanctuary and hadactually been there for about 5 days.
So Gregson, who stated he did not understand Murphy at the time, visited her house early last week to get his cows.
“She asked if I had evidence I was the owner, then informed me to get off her residentialorcommercialproperty duetothefactthat I was trespassing,” he stated.
A rejection, a warrant and an arrest
On July 25, Lockport cannonfodders, the SPCA and Gregson reacted to Murphy’s residentialorcommercialproperty to obtain the animals, troopers wrote in a news release.
But Murphy, troopers stated, declined to provide them back.
A warrant was then carriedout for Murphy’s arrest and the cows were returned to their owner.
After she was taken into custody, troopers stated, Murphy was booked into the Niagara County Jail. During a court arraignment lateron Tuesday, she pleaded not guilty to the felony charge.
As of Wednesday, she stayed complimentary on bond, authorities reported. If foundedguilty of the criminaloffense, Murphy dealswith jail time.
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