Jeffrey Freund, of Elkhorn, located thanks to social media post
By Heather Ruenz
The identity of the owner of two dogs who were found wandering around the Walmart parking lot in Delavan on Thanksgiving, was announced yesterday by Delavan Police.
Jeffrey M/ Freund, 48, of Elkhorn, appeared in Walworth County Circuit Court via video while in custody Wednesday. A signature bond of $5,000 was set at that time.
In addition to municipal citations, Freund faces charges of mistreatment of animals, failure to provide sufficient food and intentionally abandoning animals, which were referred to the Walworth County District Attorney’s office, according to Delavan Police.
The dogs – they’ve since been identified as Dexter and Blackberry – were taken to Lakeland Animal Shelter. Meanwhile, the Facebook post quickly made the rounds, ultimately resulting in 2,500 shares and more than 1,000 comments.
While many comments harshly criticized the owner, some expressed thankfulness.
“Thanksgiving Day blessed these poor babies for a better home in (the) future once nursed back to health,” someone posted.
Later that evening on Nov. 28, the original post was updated.
“Thanks to everyone who shared this information, the owner of the dogs was located,” the update stated. “The owner will be charged with animal abandonment and mistreating animals and will not get the dogs back.”
Freund is set to make his next court appearance Dec. 18.
For the rest of the story, pick up a copy of Southern Lakes Newspapers’ publications throughout the area, which are on stands now.
