| For Immediate Release Case # 11WF1778 May 8, 2012 |
Susan Kang Schroeder Chief of Staff Office: 714-347-8408 Cell: 714-292-2718 Farrah Emami
|
MAN SENTENCED TO FIVE YEARS IN STATE PRISON FOR ARSON AND ANIMAL CRUELTY AFTER SETTING FIRES INSIDE HOME AND KILLING DOG BY SLITTING HIS THROAT
SANTA ANA – A man was sentenced to five years in state prison today for setting fires inside his Stanton home and killing his dog, Dexter, by poisoning him and slitting his throat. Jaime Arturo Garcia, 31, Stanton, pleaded guilty to the court on April 26, 2012, to one felony count of arson of an inhabited property, one felony count of animal cruelty, and one misdemeanor count of unlawfully causing a fire to property and a sentencing enhancement for the personal use of a deadly weapon.
On the afternoon of July 24, 2011, Garcia closed all the doors and windows of the Stanton home he shared with his two sisters and set several small fires inside the home by lighting piles of clothing on fire. The fires caused damage to cabinets in the laundry room but did not spread throughout the house. His sisters were not home at the time.
After the fires had burned out, Garcia poisoned his 7-year-old dog Dexter, a dachshund mix, by feeding him various pills. He then used a large kitchen knife and cut Dexter’s throat. The bleeding dog ran around the house and into the bedroom, where he died on Garcia’s bed.
One of Garcia’s sisters returned home to find the house filled with smoke and called 911. The Orange County Sheriff’s Department, who investigated this case, responded to the scene. The Orange County Fire Authority also responded to the scene. Deputies discovered Dexter in the bedroom and his blood on the floors and walls throughout the home.
Garcia was transported to the hospital to be treated for self-inflicted injuries.
Deputy District Attorney Andrew Katz of the Special Prosecutions Unit prosecuted this case.
###