Four cows were stabbed to death early this month and five others badly injured by an employee at an Arizona dairy who admitted to having used methamphetamine and alcohol beforehand.
The attack occurred late Sunday night October 4 at Citrus Valley Dairy in Gila Bend. Employees at the dairy called the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office to say that 27-year-old Mario Alberto Garcia-Leon, whom they knew as Ramon Sandoval, showed up at the dairy armed with a knife and "was acting crazy."
Google Maps aerial view of Citrus Valley Dairy in Yuma, Arizona.
They said that when they tried to confront him, he began threatening them and then attacked the cows.
When SWAT team members arrived they found Garcia-Leon covered in blood and manure and the dead and injured cows were nearby. An 8-inch long knife was recovered a short time later.
Garcia-Leon, who had worked at the dairy for three months, initially barricaded himself in the employee break room and then the bathroom, but was talked into surrendering. He was booked on multiple felony charges, with bond set at $35,000.
News reports said Citrus Valley Dairy estimated damages from the attack at $22,000, including the five injured cows that would have to be taken out production.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the Facility Registry Service Facility Detail Report lists Hein Hettinga as the responsible party contact for Citrus Valley Dairy.
The author has served large Western dairy readers for the past 38 years and manages Hoard's WEST, a publication written specifically for Western herds. He is a graduate of Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo, majored in journalism and is known as a Western dairying specialist.
The attack occurred late Sunday night October 4 at Citrus Valley Dairy in Gila Bend. Employees at the dairy called the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office to say that 27-year-old Mario Alberto Garcia-Leon, whom they knew as Ramon Sandoval, showed up at the dairy armed with a knife and "was acting crazy."
They said that when they tried to confront him, he began threatening them and then attacked the cows.
When SWAT team members arrived they found Garcia-Leon covered in blood and manure and the dead and injured cows were nearby. An 8-inch long knife was recovered a short time later.
Garcia-Leon, who had worked at the dairy for three months, initially barricaded himself in the employee break room and then the bathroom, but was talked into surrendering. He was booked on multiple felony charges, with bond set at $35,000.
News reports said Citrus Valley Dairy estimated damages from the attack at $22,000, including the five injured cows that would have to be taken out production.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the Facility Registry Service Facility Detail Report lists Hein Hettinga as the responsible party contact for Citrus Valley Dairy.
The author has served large Western dairy readers for the past 38 years and manages Hoard's WEST, a publication written specifically for Western herds. He is a graduate of Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo, majored in journalism and is known as a Western dairying specialist.
