Trevor Hunt case: Woodbury Heights dog groomer charged after death of family’s 3-year-old dog

WOODBURY HEIGHTS, New Jersey (WPVI) — This week, a South Jersey dog ​​handler was indicted in connection with the death of a family dog ​​in summer, The Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office said.

Trevor Huntowner of K9 Kingdom in Woodbury Heights, was indicted Wednesday by a grand jury on several drug and third-degree animal cruelty charges.

(The video in the player above is from a previous story.)

Ashley Jenkins claims that a 3-year-old border collie-Australian shepherd mix named Harley was abandoned on July 12 while she was visiting her family on a regular basis.

But the family’s life changed in an instant when Hunt called to say the dog had died in his care.

“(He said) she died suddenly and that her heart just stopped, which didn’t make sense because she’s not even 4 years old,” Jenkins said.

They immediately called 911 and met police at the scene. According to court documents obtained by Action News, when officers arrived to speak with Hunt, he allegedly appeared “tense” and was trying to delete evidence from his phone.

He was then reportedly knocked to the ground for resisting arrest.

Authorities said a search warrant executed at the business later that evening resulted in the seizure of dozens of small plastic bags containing suspected heroin. Some of the bags reportedly had the words “Alien rock” and “House party III” on them.

In the indictment, authorities said fentanyl was among the drugs in Hunt’s possession.

Jenkins says the dog had no underlying health conditions, adding that “it wasn’t her health that would have caused her death.”

On Friday, the family told Action News that an autopsy did not reveal what caused the dog’s death, but witness statements helped support the animal cruelty charge.

In charging documents, authorities allege Hunt recklessly caused the death of a living creature by failing to provide it with necessary care as the person who would otherwise be expected to care for a living animal.

He is being held in the Salem County Jail.

Hunt is the new owner of K9 Kingdom. The previous owner died last summer.