A pair of suspects who were expected to turn themselves in on charges that they were responsible for the deaths of nine dogs that perished inside an extremely hot truck in July 2023 have not, and warrants have been issued for their arrest.
According to Indiana State Police, 55-year-old Michael McHenry and 44-year-old Jessee Urbaszewski were both supposed to turn themselves in to police Tuesday after being charged in the case, but neither had done so by 6 p.m.
Both men were charged with 18 counts of neglect of a vertebrate animal, a misdemeanor in Indiana. Warrants have been issued for their arrest in connection with the case.
According to authorities, the dogs died of heat stroke after an air conditioning unit malfunctioned while being taken to a training facility in Michigan.
The 18 dogs were transported from O’Hare International Airport to a K-9 training facility, according to the Humane Society of Hobart.
Police said the temperature began to rise after the AC unit stopped working, with the vehicle stuck in traffic for hours.
The dogs started barking, causing the driver to stop and start removing dogs that had been placed in crates.
Authorities allege the driver of the vehicle was using a cooling device not designed to replace air conditioning units and that the units used were inadequate for the task.