A Neenach man found with several firearms and a dozen starving Chihuahuas was sentenced Thursday to seven years in prison, after pleading no contest to: one count of criminal threats; three counts each of possession of firearm by a felon; and cruelty to an animal.
Ignacio Jesus Adame, 43, appeared Thursday in Los Angeles Superior Court where he entered his pleas, Ricardo Santiago of the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office said.
Deputy District Attorney Amarilla Blondia said Adame was immediately sentenced to seven years in state prison as a result of the negotiated plea.
On Nov. 21, 2018, the defendant threatened to shoot water company employees who went to his property to disconnect the meter, according to evidence presented at the preliminary hearing.
When local sheriff’s deputies executed a search warrant at the home as a result of the threat, they discovered the starving dogs, 23 firearms, large-capacity magazines and thousands of rounds of ammunition, the prosecutor said.
When they found the starving dogs, one of the deputies grabbed a box of Cheerios off the counter and dumped the cereal on the floor for the dogs to eat.
The grim discovery was made after members of the SCV Sheriff’s Career Offenders, Burglary, and Robbery Apprehension (COBRA) unit suited up in Santa Clarita and then drove to Neenach to serve a warrant there, east of Gorman, near the Kern County line.
Once the dogs were seized by the Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control, they were nursed back to health and were eventually adopted.
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