A man and wife have been arrested on animal cruelty charges.
Warrants for the arrest of Morgan Alayne Bateman, 39, Checotah, and Cody Donald Smith, Piru, Calif, were is- sued on Aug. 8.
The couple turned themselves in on Aug. 13.
Associate District Judge Brendon Bridges entered pleas of not guilty on behalf of both defendants and set bond at $20,000 for Bateman and $10,000 for Smith. A verbal bond reduction on Aug. 14 brought Bateman’s bond down to $10,000.
Both were ordered back to court for a prepreliminary hearing conference at 9 a.m. on Sept. 18.
The charges were filed after deputies with the McIntosh County Sheriff ’s Department, acting on complaints filed by a witness, went to a property south of Checotah and found dogs, cats, camels and horses in various stages of starvation and thirst.
One dog was found dead in a trash bag.
Deputies Seth Morgan and Christian Degraffenreid, in a Probable Cause Affidavit, reported going to the rural property south of Checotah.
They talked to the owner of the property, according to the affidavit, but the owner said he has nothing to do with the animals being kept in campers and cattle trailers at the site.
Seth reported that he found two small dogs in a pin in front of a camper without food or water.
“I then noticed a small black trash bag that was covered with flies and maggots.
Inside the bag was a dog that had been dead for a long time.
Another dog was found in a trailer that appeared to be a Belgian Malinois but due to its aggressiveness the officers could not get close to it.
“I then walked to a house that appeared to be abandoned. Outside of the home, I located a dog that appeared to be a Labrador. The dog did not appear to have any food or water. The dog was chained to the house,” Morgan stated.
Behind the abandoned house was another cattle trailer containing two small dogs and a bigger dog.
“I could see water for the animals on both sides of the trailer, but it appeared to be old and very dirty,” according to Morgan.
On a third piece of property, there was a small shed, the affidavit stated.
“I opened the door and found two cats and numerous birds. All animals had food and water within the shed.”
