An upstate New York harness racing trainer is accused of punching a horse, causing a fractured skull and requiring it to be euthanized, authorities said.
Orange County District Attorney David said the suspect, 26-year-old Frederic Bourgaud, was killed on Tuesday at the Pinebush Training Facility in Crawford, about 90 miles north of New York City, last July when he killed a racehorse named Finish Line. He was charged with two charges in connection with his death. Hoobler.
Bourgaud is accused of hitting the horse with an unspecified hard object, causing a skull fracture and euthanizing the horse, according to Hoobler’s social media posts.
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Investigators then exhumed the horse and had it examined by veterinary experts.
Horses graze in a flooded yard in Matagorda County, Texas, in the wake of Hurricane Nicholas on Tuesday, September 14, 2021. (Elizabeth Conley/Houston Chronicle, via AP)
Bourgaud was charged in November with two felonies, including second-degree criminal mischief. A judge on Tuesday ordered Bourgaud, who is from Canada, to surrender his passport as the case progresses.
It is not clear whether Mr. Bourgaud has a lawyer. The Associated Press left phone messages seeking information with the district attorney and legal aid office.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals pointed out that Bourgaud had previously been fined or suspended for kicking horses and using the whip excessively.
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“Mr. Bourgaud is a repeat offender who was banned from racing years ago and should have been suspended the first time he whipped a horse after a race,” said PETA Executive Vice President Kathy Guillermo. said in a prepared release.
