Two Brockport State College students, one of them a 20-year-old from West Seneca, were charged with forcing a dog to drink beer from a keg at a party over the weekend, authorities said Monday.
Robert A. Yates, 20, allegedly took a photograph of the dog as the second student held the animal up by its rear legs Saturday night, forcing its face on top of the keg where beer had puddled, according to information released by the Village of Brockport Police Department.
Yates later posted the photo on the social media site Twitter, and Brockport police received a tip on animal cruelty at 5:25 p.m. Sunday, resulting in Yates’ arrest on charges of animal cruelty and torturing an animal, Brockport Police Chief Daniel P. Varrenti said.
Further investigation resulted in the arrest Monday of the other student, Shane P. Oliver, 20, of Bergen in Genesee County, on the same charges, the chief said.
“Unfortunately, someone came up with a dumb idea, and someone did something even dumber,” Varrenti said of the incident, which occurred at a party in a house rented by college students on Monroe Avenue.
The owner of the dog was not home and had nothing to do with what happened, police said, adding that the dog is in good condition.
“The dog was a pet of a person who resided in the home, but the owner was not in the home at the time of the incident,” Varrenti said. “It was a party of some sort in the evening hours Saturday, and the dog apparently was forced to consume beer.”
Officials at the college explained that because of privacy rules, they could not say whether the students have been suspended. But the college issued this statement: “We were alarmed to learn of this disturbing photo. The college is investigating this matter and will take appropriate action once the details surrounding the photo are learned.”
Village police were assisted in the investigation by campus police officers and the dog warden from the Town of Sweden in Monroe County.
email: lmichel@buffnews.com
Robert A. Yates, 20, allegedly took a photograph of the dog as the second student held the animal up by its rear legs Saturday night, forcing its face on top of the keg where beer had puddled, according to information released by the Village of Brockport Police Department.
Yates later posted the photo on the social media site Twitter, and Brockport police received a tip on animal cruelty at 5:25 p.m. Sunday, resulting in Yates’ arrest on charges of animal cruelty and torturing an animal, Brockport Police Chief Daniel P. Varrenti said.
Further investigation resulted in the arrest Monday of the other student, Shane P. Oliver, 20, of Bergen in Genesee County, on the same charges, the chief said.
“Unfortunately, someone came up with a dumb idea, and someone did something even dumber,” Varrenti said of the incident, which occurred at a party in a house rented by college students on Monroe Avenue.
The owner of the dog was not home and had nothing to do with what happened, police said, adding that the dog is in good condition.
“The dog was a pet of a person who resided in the home, but the owner was not in the home at the time of the incident,” Varrenti said. “It was a party of some sort in the evening hours Saturday, and the dog apparently was forced to consume beer.”
Officials at the college explained that because of privacy rules, they could not say whether the students have been suspended. But the college issued this statement: “We were alarmed to learn of this disturbing photo. The college is investigating this matter and will take appropriate action once the details surrounding the photo are learned.”
Village police were assisted in the investigation by campus police officers and the dog warden from the Town of Sweden in Monroe County.
email: lmichel@buffnews.com