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Six people, including a veterinarian and the owner of the Ashton Pound in Dublin, have been tried for cruelty to animals.
The River Road Animal Shelter, Castleknock, operated a dog watchdog service for the greater Dublin area. However, a welfare investigation into the treatment and death of dogs was launched last year.
A veterinarian, the pound owner, the manager and three other employees were previously charged and appeared in Dublin District Court on Friday.
Garda Sergeant Paul Keane presented them with evidence books.
Prosecutor Anna Bridgeman told the court that the director of the prosecutor’s office had agreed to try the charges.
Judge John Lindsay agreed to grant the order to be referred to the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on January 28. Copies of Garda interview videos must be made available to the defense. Judge Lindsay warned they would have 14 days to notify prosecutors if they had alibis.
Manager Donal Moroney, 67, of Ayrfield Drive, Coolock, Dublin, is charged with allowing another “layman” to kill a male white bichon frize and cause unnecessary suffering.
A controlled drug called Release, which must be given intravenously, was reportedly given orally to the animal on July 24th last year at the shelter.
The drug was also given orally to a fawn male Akita on the same day, causing unnecessary suffering.
On July 28th, Mr Moroney allegedly obstructed investigator Garda Aine McQuillan by failing to comply with a request made the previous day not to remove the Akita from his kennel.
He is accused of having failed to win a veterinarian for this dog immediately after the investigating Garda made this a requirement.
His remaining charges relate to violations of animal health regulations.
Veterinarian Sydney Nagle, 62, with an address in Oaks, Hollystown, Dublin 15, was charged on July 14, 2020 of possession of controlled drug release in the dog toilet in violation of drug regulations and laws.
Mr Nagle of Cara Veterinary Hospital at Ballycoolin, Dublin 15, is also charged with unnecessarily harming a deer-colored Akita male and a white male Bichon Frize at the shelter on July 24th last year, contrary to Section 12 (1) of Animal Health – and Animal Welfare Act 2013.
He has a charge for arranging and allowing another person to kill a protected animal on the same day.
The vet is also alleged to have failed to keep a record of purchases and sales, quantities administered, batch numbers and serial numbers of prescriptions on July 29, 2020.
He also has a fee for allowing a person to use a veterinary medicinal product for use by a veterinarian only.
David Stone, 63, the pound owner, with an address in Hazelbrook, Loughlinstown, Ratoath, County Meath, faces three Animal Health and Welfare Act charges. He is accused of causing unnecessary harm to the fawn male Akita and the white male Bichon Frize on July 24th last year.
Mr. Stone is also charged with killing, arranging, or allowing someone else to kill a protected animal there that same day.
Gordon Markey Quinn, 22, of Nangle Court, Windtown, Navan, Co Meath, and Tamara Philips, 24, of Westway Rise, Blanchardstown, Dublin 15, and Raymond Connolly, 53, of Claddagh Green, Ballyfermot, Dublin, face the same charges confronted about the Akita and the Bichon Frize and the arranging for or permission to kill a protected animal on July 24, 2020.
Mr Connolly faces additional charges of obstruction of the investigating Garda at Pound four days later.
They did not specify how they are going to plead.
Mr. Nagle and Mr. Stone did not seek legal aid, but it was granted to the other co-defendants at the request of their attorneys. The manager of the pound, Mr. Moroney, will represent the senior legal aid counsel.
His attorney Danica Kinane told the court that Mr. Moroney would “fully deny” the charges.
