Garden City, Mo. man arrested weeks after two horses were shot and killed

A 55-year-old man from Garden City, Mo. suspected of shooting and killing two horses on Christmas Eve was arrested on Wednesday, authorities in Bates and Cass counties announced.

The Bates County prosecutor’s office charged the suspect, David H. Johnson, with two felony counts of property damage “for the intentional death of the two horses,” the Bates County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release Wednesday.

The two horses — Rusty and Brownie — were staying at a property near Amoret, Mo., the horse owner, Terry Wisdom, told two local media outlets. Wisdom said both horses had been shot in the head and found deceased inside a fenced area.

Johnson, authorities said, is the adult son of the property owner. The horses’ owner, Wisdom, told reporters he was boarding the two horses on a friend’s property.

Johnson was arrested after visiting with officers of the Garden City, Mo. Police Department and Bates County Sheriff’s Office. The Bates County Sheriff’s Office said Johnson was at the Garden City, Mo. Police Department Wednesday morning for an unrelated case.

Bates County detectives went to Garden City, Mo. to follow up on a lead in reference to the report that two horses were shot and killed on Dec. 24, 2017 in rural Bates County. The sheriff’s office said information they received from Johnson in an interview Wednesday led to his arrest. Johnson was taken to the Bates County Detention Center, and bond was set at $9,000, cash or surety. A court date has not yet been set in the case.

The sheriff’s office said detectives will continue to investigate the shooting incident and that additional charges may be filed related to the alleged shooting and abuse of the animals.

This story was originally published January 17, 2018 at 7:36 PM with the headline "Garden City, Mo. man arrested weeks after two horses were shot and killed."