An official with the Humane Society of Southern Arizona (HSSA), where hundreds of animals transferred from an animal shelter in San Diego this past summer were unaccounted for, announced Thursday that the organization believed it had "received new information that sheds light on the likely outcome for the remaining animals."
The San Diego Humane Society (SDHS) reached out to other animal rescues earlier this summer to see if anyone could help with its overload of smaller pets. Then-Humane Society of Southern Arizona CEO Steve Farley agreed to help and COO Christian Gonzales executed the transfer on Aug. 7, 2023. However, the animals were instead delivered to a private, family-run group that is not a licensed rescue organization, HSSA said. Of the 323 small animals sent east by the San Diego Humane Society on Aug. 7, more than 250 have since been unaccounted for.
On Thursday, HSSA sent out a news release that read, in part:
Get San Diego local news, weather forecasts, sports and lifestyle stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC San Diego newsletters.
"The day after receiving these animals, Colten Jones sent a text message seeking assistance in processing a high volume of guinea pigs and rabbits for food. We know that Mr. Jones runs a reptile breeding company called the Fertile Turtle. A part of this business includes selling both live and frozen animals for reptile feed."
The news came to light after Chorus Nylander, a reporter with KVOA in Tucson, said he was provided with a text from an unidentified breeder/animal dealer in Arizona that Nylander was told was sent by Colton Jones.
The contents of the text — which was reportedly sent on Aug. 8 — and its sender have not been confirmed by NBC 7. The text reportedly reads:
"Do you have the ability to freeze off a bunch of guinea pigs and or rabbits? I don't have the manpower or labor to be able to do it in time for the show and it's too much for me."
SDHS said that it was "heartbroken at the likely outcome for the small pets transferred" in an Instagram post on Nov. 15.
Local
"We now believe that it is likely that these animals were not adopted into homes but instead utilized as reptile feeder animals," SDHS continued.
In early October, HSSA Board Chairman Robert Garcia said the organization had fired Farley and accepted the resignation of its chief operating officer as well. Garcia said last month the animals were delivered to Trevor Jones, a family member of Colton Jones, in Mesa, Arizona, even though they were not a licensed rescue. Before his firing, Farley said the group was able to find homes for all 254 animals in seven weeks. Garcia, however, revealed the family connection to Colton Jones. Since the transfer, The Fertile Turtle has deleted its Facebook and Instagram pages. NBC 7 attempted to reach Colton Jones but did not get a response at that time.
On Thursday, HSSA said in a news release that the San Diego Humane Society was working "with its legal advisors to advance both civil and criminal proceedings, and HSSA is considering legal action as well. To facilitate further investigation, both organizations encourage anyone possessing relevant information to contact the Tucson Police Department, referencing Case #P2311020076."
Garcia said at a Zoom news conference on Thursday that HSSA, through its investigator, had last communicated with Colton Jones a few weeks back but that, when he became aware of the latest allegations, he reached out to the investigator Wednesday to deny the claims.
"The information [in the text] surely tells us what the intention was with the animals and we've asked repeatedly for Mr. Jones to provide information to the contrary, and he has not," Garcia said Thursday. "So we can only make determinations based upon the information that we have, and this shows an intent and that's the only thing we can base our determinations or conclusions on," adding, "Jones denied any sort of improper action but we're waiting for him to prove otherwise."
Garcia, who was obviously upset about the latest developments, seemed to hold out little hope for the unaccounted-for animals.
"I'm heartbroken for the animals, I'm heartbroken for our community, I'm heartbroken for our organization whose mission it is to protect and save animals," Garcia said.
Garcia exonerated the San Diego Humane Society in October: “[SDHS] are not responsible for what happened due to the poor judgment and inappropriate actions of the Humane Society’s former leadership,” he said.
HSSA’s internal investigation has concluded, it said in Thursday's news release, adding that its report would be released early next month. The San Diego Humane Society's probe, however, is ongoing.
