Ex-cowboys player accused of cruelty to animals
A former Dallas Cowboys player and Roosevelt High School alum was arrested after he allegedly abandoned a puppy in a storage unit for two days during the summer when temperatures were over 100 degrees.
Dwayne Anthony Missouri, 44, was charged with cruelty to animals, a class A misdemeanor, states an arrest affidavit.
Helotes police responded to reports of a dog barking inside a storage unit of a Storage Mart on the Northwest Side on June 20.
According to the affidavit, the officer could hear the dog barking. Once the unit was opened, the officer found the small puppy with two empty food bowls and a bag of dog food. It was noted that the unit was “warm,” and fecal matter and urine were found on a pair of shoes.
Helotes Animal Control took the dog, the affidavit states. Shelter staff said Tuesday the dog has been adopted.
Investigators reviewed surveillance footage showing Missouri entered the unit with the dog on June 18 and didn’t return until June 25. Missouri left a voicemail on June 20 to the Storage Mart phone claiming he had left the dog in the care of someone else, and they left the dog in the unit, which was opposite of what was shown on the surveillance footage and the record of when his personal gate code had been used, the affidavit states.
Missouri was arrested Sunday, and bail was set at $2,000.
Missouri, a defensive end, was drafted in the seventh round of the 2001 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Ravens but later played two games with the Dallas Cowboys, according to Pro Football Reference. He also had a five-year stint in the Arena Football League.