- Florida, USA -
~ Update: June 25, 2024
Broward County Animal Division tells me that Ruby was only 4 months old and provided me with her picture.
~ Original story:
The Plantation Police Department arrested 35-year-old CHEEYANA VANEUS (pictured).
In a media release, police date the incident that led to VANEUS’ arrest back to April 22, 2024, when Broward County Animal Control (BCAC) was alerted to a dog inside a garage who “appeared injured and very sick.”
A maintenance worker noticed the dog at VANEUS’ home in the 10800 block of Northwest Eighth Court and contacted BCAC.
According to the affidavit, ACO Southwick responded to the scene and saw an open garage door with a dog laying inside. Court documents identified the furvictim as a Plott Hound Labrador mix named Ruby.
The Officer reported that “...the dog did not move” and was “unable to walk or stand up.” Officer Southwick also noted that Ruby’s back legs had visible injuries with the left one significantly swollen. Due to her condition, Ruby wasn’t able to reach the food bowl on the step above her.
A woman approached Officer Southwick and explained that her daughter VANEUS was Ruby’s guardian. The woman stated that Ruby had been injured two-three days prior and that her daughter had “not made any efforts to obtain medical treatment or other assistance for the dog.” The woman also said Ruby refused to eat for “being in pain.” She gave Officer Southwick VANEUS’ phone number.
Officer Southwick was able to make contact with VANEUS who said that Ruby had a veterinary appointment at the VCA Central Park Animal Hospital later that day at 6:00 p.m.
When Officer Southwick called the hospital to verify Ruby’s appointment, she was told that there was no appointment booked for Ruby. At that point, the officer called VANEUS back and confronted her about that.
VANEUS told Officer Southwick that Ruby was not hers and that her guardian was her “partner”, Jasmine Grant.
Officer Southwick emphasized that she was also a responsible party and stressed that Ruby needed immediate animal care. VANEUS agreed to meet with Officer Southwick at the VCA Hollywood Animal Hospital and Officer Southwick made her way there with Ruby. VANEUS never showed up. Officer Southwick left Ruby with staff, gave them VANEUS’ phone number and left.
The following day, April 23, 2024, ACO Castro went to the hospital to check on Ruby’s status and asked staff whether VANEUS had called to check on Ruby.
Staff told her that no one called and no one showed up. At that point Officer Castro called VANEUS and asked her whether she was coming to the hospital to pick up Ruby. VANEUS said she and “Jasmine” would go later to pick up Ruby. As Officer Castro was about to give VANEUS the hospital address, the call got disconnected so she tried to call VANEUS back but her several attempts were unsuccessful. Officer Castro left a voicemail to let VANEUS know that she was going to take Ruby to the Broward County Animal Care facility to be seen by a county veterinarian.
According to the affidavit, no one showed up to pick up Ruby or to face her medical care expenses.
Meanwhile, Officer Southwick returned to VANEUS’ home to give an update on Ruby but no one opened the door. She left a message to advise that Ruby’s legs had been x-rayed and were found to be broken. While on the scene posting the notice, a woman showed up and identified herself as the resident of the home. She told Officer Southwick that Jasmine, VANEUS, and her mother were family members but denied that they lived there. She said they were just visiting with the dog, and that she told them to leave and stay in a hotel.
On April 30, 2024, Animal Control officers met with Dr. Shapiro who had handled Ruby’s case. He explained that Ruby’s injuries had occurred one-three weeks before Ruby was brought to him. He went on to say that Ruby’s injuries were severe and gave a poor diagnosis for her recovery. Sadly, Ruby was euthanized to end her PREVENTABLE suffering. Dr. Shapiro said Ruby was experiencing constant pain.
On May 5, 2024, Officer Southwick returned to the home where she hoped to find VANEUS and she was joined by Officer Fish. VANEUS opened the door and said she was aware they were investigating Ruby’s condition. VANEUS agreed to give a statement which had a lot of inconsistencies. It turned out that VANEUS made up “Jasmine Grant.” As stated in the affidavit, “It appears that this is a fictional person created by the Defendant to avoid responsibility for Ruby.”
VANEUS was arrested on June 20, 2024, and charged with one felony count of aggravated animal cruelty.
At the time of writing, arrest records show that she is no longer in custody.
# # #
Voice For Us Disclaimer: This story is sourced from the press release by the Plantation Police Department and court documents. Please note that details may be removed or new information added should updates become available.
In the case of charges being dropped, dismissed, or the case being purged, this article will be rectified accordingly, if official documentation is provided to Voice For Us.
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