Dunwoody Residents Arrested on Animal Cruelty Charges

By Kristal Dixon, Patch Staff

SANDY SPRINGS, GA -- A welfare check on a minivan parked outside a Sandy Springs grocery store led to the discovery of more than two dozen cats and the arrest of a mother and her daughter.

Sandy Springs police on Tuesday arrested Dunwoody residents Sharyn Ann Wingate, 70, and Alexandria Wingate, 41, in connection to the discovery. The pair had active warrants for their arrest on cruelty to animal charges, an incident report from the agency notes.

An officer with the agency responded to Kroger on Sandy Springs Circle around 2:30 a.m. April 26 in reference to a welfare check on a possible homeless family in a blue minivan.

The officer arrived and noticed the vehicle "was filled with a large number of cats" and one woman, later identified as the younger Wingate.

"As I approached vehicle, I detected a strong odor of cat urine and feces," the officer wrote.

The woman told the officer that she and her mother stopped by Kroger to purchase some water. Her mother, Alexandra Wingate said, went inside the store to make the purchase while she waited in the minivan with the cats, according to the report.

The officer asked about the "health and safety" of the cats, and the woman stated she and her mother "worked with the local veterinary clinic as a part of their placement department," the report states.

The officer asked for the woman's date of birth and name and ran that information through state and national databases. That information returned as the younger Wingate having the active arrest warrant out of DeKalb County.

Once Sharyn Wingate emerged from the store, her information was also entered into the database, which also noted she also had an active warrant issued by DeKalb County for her arrest.

Both women were taken into custody, and Sandy Springs police informed Fulton County Animal Services of the discovery.

A Fulton County Animal Services filed supervisor was called to the scene after police discovered the cats, said Karen Hirsch of Lifeline Animal Project, the company that manages the shelter.

The supervisor and another animal control officer "dug through the trash" to find the cats inside the minivan, Hirsch added.

Out of 38 cats rescued, 34 are now ready for adoption.

"Out of the four that aren't, one is a nursing mom with new kittens, one is pregnant, one has an upper respiratory infection and one is FIV (Feline Immunodeficiency Virus) positive," she added.

Anyone interested in adopting the cats can contactadoptions@fultonanimalservices.com or call 404-613-0357.

"We are very grateful to the citizen who reported this," Hirsch added.

Residents who witness animal cruelty are strongly encouraged to report it to 404-613-0358 in Fulton County and 404-294-2939 in DeKalb County, Hirsch stated.

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Images via Sandy Springs police and Lifeline's Fulton County Animal Services