Patricia Moore Facing 60 Additional Charges

January 10, 2018, Edmonton, AB – Sixty additional charges of animal cruelty have now been laid against Patricia Moore by Evansburg RCMP, who announced the new charges in a statement on January 9. The previous day, Alberta SPCA, RCMP officers, and a veterinarian removed 65 horses and six dogs from the acreage west of Edmonton, the result of a continuing investigation into reports of starving and emaciated horses.

This photo of horses on Patricia Moore’s property was taken on December 20, 2018, by a concerned Parkland County resident. Photo: Lauren Nagel

“Finally, the animals are going to be cared for properly and be put into proper facilities and get proper medical care and food,” said neighbour, Brenda Belanger.

Cpl Chris Warren told CBC News that the animals were alive but in varied states of health, and there was concern for their well-being.

Original story continues below.

Two Albertans from Parkland County west of Edmonton are facing charges of animal cruelty after allegedly mistreating horses on a rural property. 

On Friday, January 4, 2019, the RCMP arrested and charged Patricia Lynn Moore, 48, with three counts of permitting and/or causing unnecessary pain, suffering or injury to animals. The criminal investigation was launched on December 12, 2018, after police received reports of starving horses near Entwistle.

Moore has faced charges before. In February 2010, Moore was charged under the Animal Protection Act when three horses were found dead and another 16 were seized by the SPCA. She was convicted of allowing an animal to be in distress and failing to provide adequate food and water, fined $1,500, and prohibited from owning more than two horses for five years.

On Monday, January 7, RCMP arrested and charged a second person, Ross Andrew Atkinson, 50, of Parkland County, with three counts of permitting and/or causing unnecessary pain, suffering or injury to animals. 

Both Moore and Atkinson have been released on bail and are scheduled to appear in Evansburg Provincial Court on Monday, January 14, 2019.

The Alberta SPCA is also investigating.

- With files from globalnews.ca, edmontonjournal.com, cbc.ca.

Photo: iStock/Philip Openshaw