Man admits animal cruelty in kittens’ deaths

Police: Three pets suffered ‘blunt force trauma’

NORRISTOWN >> A Reading man awaits his fate from a judge after he admitted to animal cruelty charges in connection with the deaths of three kittens that suffered “blunt force trauma” while in his care at the Upper Pottsgrove Township apartment he shared with the owner of the kittens.

Andres Eduardo Robles, 26, of the 200 block of South 10th Street in Reading, pleaded guilty in Montgomery County Court to three felony counts of aggravated cruelty to animals in connection with incidents that occurred between October and December 2021 while he lived in the 1000 block of North Hanover Street in Upper Pottsgrove.

Judge Thomas P. Rogers deferred sentencing so that court officials can complete a background investigation report about Robles, who will undergo drug, alcohol and psychological evaluations.

Robles was permitted to remain free on bail pending a sentencing hearing later this year.

The open guilty plea means Robles has no deals with prosecutors regarding his sentence and the judge will have sole discretion in fashioning the punishment after hearing arguments from the lawyers.

Robles faces a possible maximum sentence of 10½ to 21 years in prison on the charges. However, state sentencing guidelines could allow for a lesser sentence.

Court documents indicate Upper Pottsgrove police and an officer from the Montgomery County SPCA began an animal cruelty investigation in November 2021 after a local veterinarian contacted the Montgomery County SPCA regarding a kitten named Luna that was euthanized on Nov. 21 after suffering suspicious injuries. The veterinarian “expressed concern that Luna may be a victim of animal abuse due to unexplained blunt force trauma,” according to the criminal complaint filed by Upper Pottsgrove Police Officer

Sean Farrell and Tracie Graham, a humane society police officer with the SPCA.

Luna, a domestic short hair female kitten was brought to Coventry Animal Hospital on Nov. 17 by the woman who owned the kitten and she was accompanied by Robles. Luna was unresponsive at the time and “she had several injuries which were consistent with blunt force head trauma and/or strangulation,” according to the criminal complaint.

The veterinarian also noticed

an ulcerated paw pad on Luna’s front left paw that appeared to be from a previous burn, investigators alleged. The veterinarian advised the kitten’s owner that Luna would either have to be transferred to an emergency veterinary hospital for treatment or euthanized to alleviate her suffering and the owner opted for humane euthanasia, court documents indicate.

Investigators obtained a warrant to take possession of Luna’s remains for the purpose of a necropsy.

On Nov. 29, the woman who owned Luna told police that she had three kittens, Luna, Mamoru and Levi “all die unexpectedly within the past several weeks.” The woman claimed that each of the kittens died when she was not at home and that all of them appeared fine when she left her home in the 1000 block of North Hanover Street.

“(The woman) stated that her roommate, Andres Robles, was home with the kittens when the injuries occurred and that nobody else had access into the apartment,” Farrell and Graham wrote in the arrest affidavit.

The woman advised police that the kitten Levi died unexpectedly just days after Luna was euthanized and that she and Robles buried Levi at Riverfront Park in Pottstown. The woman led police to the burial site and Levi’s remains were exhumed

“During the course of the investigation, I was able to determine that each of the kittens suffered injuries days to weeks prior to their deaths ranging from suspected burns, lacerations, eye injuries and fractured bones.”

Upper Pottsgrove Police Officer Sean Farrell and Tracie Graham, a humane society police officer with the SPCA

for the purpose of a necropsy, court papers indicate.

An SPCA veterinarian performed necropsies on Luna and Levi on Dec. 2, 2021.

The necropsy report for Levi indicated the kitten suffered “multiple incidences of blunt force trauma pre-mortem,” including dermal abrasion, multiple rib fractures, fractured tail, lung punctures and a liver fracture, according to court documents. A veterinarian suspected either a burn or trauma to Levi’s tail such as a “pulling or crushing type injury.”

The necropsy report for Luna indicated the kitten suffered “multiple incidences of blunt force trauma,” including blunt force head trauma, lacerations, dermal bruising and fractured ribs, police alleged.

“During the course of the investigation, I was able to determine that each of the kittens suffered injuries days to weeks prior to their deaths ranging from suspected burns, lacerations, eye injuries and fractured bones,” Farrell and Graham wrote

in the arrest affidavit.

Investigators also obtained October 2021 veterinary records pertaining to Mamoru that indicated the kitten suffered “some sort of traumatic incident” and that “there is significant swelling around the eye and subconjunctival hemorrhage,” according to court papers. The reports indicated that “CPR was initiated, but was not successful” and the cause of Mamoru’s “arrest was not readily apparent, though he did have a dislocation of his left tibiotarsal joint,” or ankle.

A veterinarian opined that the injuries suffered by the indoor kittens “were inconsistent with any type of accident that could’ve occurred inside the home,” court document alleged.

Investigators said interviews with the owner of the kittens and Robles confirmed that Robles “was in fact the only person home each and every time that one of these kittens was injured.”

Assistant District Attorney Gabrielle Hughes is handling the prosecution. Defense lawyer Kenneth Kitay represents Robles.