Two Arrested After Police Find Dog Remains

Two Breathitt County women were lodged in the Kentucky River Regional Jail on Thursday after police officers located several deceased dogs in an Elkatawa home.

Officers were called on Sunday, July 5, to Lot 14 at 76 Beattyville Road after a volunteer from a local organization reported the smell of decomposition coming from the trailer and what the volunteer believed was a possible dead animal inside.

Jackson Police Officer Cody Lovins responded to the call and talked with the volunteer, who provided information about the case.

According to police reports, a severely malnourished, flea-infested Yorkie from the Beattyville Road residence had been received by a Breathitt County woman, who then passed it on to a third party.  Concerned for the dog's health, the third party took the dog to a veterinarian for medical treatment.  The animal had sustained serious injuries from flea-related scratching.

Officials said the animal had come from the residence on Beattyville Road, prompting the volunteer to check for other animals there.  She discovered the smell after knocking on the door of what appeared to be an unoccupied trailer.

JPD Officer Lovins used force to enter the structure after determining that “exigent circumstances” existed and the cause of the smell needed to be determined.

 Inside the structure, Lovins found what appeared to be the bones of a puppy in a laundry basket in the living room.  He noted feces through the structure and no food or water.  After a search of the residence, he found what “appeared to be a deceased blonde poodle beside the bathtub in the master bedroom.”

Lovins noted that the poodle was in an advanced state of decomposition and had been partially eaten.

On July 8, Officer returned to the trailer and took photographs of the animals for “proof and evidence.”

After some investigation, Lovins interviewed McKenzie Leigh Prater, 25, of Beattyville Road, about what was located at the home.  Prater told investigators that she left the dogs at the residence because they were not allowed at her new address.  Prater told Lovins that she saw the dogs four days before the interview and that they were alive, but later changed the date to two weeks prior to the interview after learning that the animal had been found five days earlier.

Prater was arrested and charged with two counts of Torture of a Dog or Cat, and an additional charge was added for Tampering with Physical Evidence.

The additional charge resulted from an alleged attempt by Prater and Nicole Marie Spicer, 24, of Jackson, to dispose of the evidence in the case by concealing the remains of the animals.

Sources reported that Spicer and Prater were at a home on Riley Branch when someone called and reported that the police were at the Beattyville Road trailer.  Prater allegedly told Spicer that they needed to “go to the residence to get the dog (the poodle) from inside and dispose of the body.”

The pair drove to the location on Beattyville Road and later dumped the animal over the hill in a red blanket on Houston Road.

Spicer was also charged with one count of Complicity to Tamper with Physical Evidence for her role in the effort to conceal the alleged crimes.

Both Prater and Spicer were transported to the Kentucky River Regional Jail and lodged on July 9.  Both appeared in Breathitt District Court on July 13 before Judge Gary Salyers.  Both were appointed public defenders and are scheduled to make a second court appearance on July 16.

The bond for each was set at $5,000 in cash.