Genesee Co. sheriff on ‘horrific’ animal abuse cases

GENESEE CO., Mich. (WNEM) – Genesee County Sheriff’s Office held a press release on Thursday, March 16 to discuss two recent animal abuse cases.

On Thursday, March 16 at 3:30 p.m., Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson announced new details about two recent animal abuse cases.

The first case involved a man named Nicholas Jaco, 34, of Flint. Swanson said Jaco served in a non-deploy unit of the military for two years and ended up putting in a request for a service dog.

Swanson said the Veterans Association provided Jaco with a young German Shepard named Tink. He said Jaco later left Tink in her cage without providing any food or water and left his apartment for two weeks.

Swanson said the landlord discovered the scene and realized Tink had starved to death in her cage.

Jaco was arrested and on Jan. 29, he was charged with second-degree killing and torturing an animal. He is out on bond.

Swanson said the second case involves a crush video from 2021. He clarified that crush videos were popular videos in the 1990s and early 2000s in which a person would record themselves crushing the head of a domesticated animal and sell the video online for profit.

Swanson said in 1999, legislation was passed to make these videos a federal crime.

Cheyenne O’Berry, 28, and Jeffery Meadows, 32, of Pontiac were arrested for making and monetizing a crush video in which Meadows recorded O’Berry killing a domesticated rat, according to Swanson.

O’Berry was charged with using a computer to commit a crime and killing and torturing an animal, both of which are felonies. She was arraigned on Feb. 28.

Meadows was charged with third-degree killing and torturing an animal. He was arraigned on March 9.

O’Berry and Meadows are both out on bond.

Swanson said he wants people to know that these types of cases happen everywhere.

He urges people to speak up if they notice any signs of animal abuse from people in their lives.

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