According to testimony, the pig had been found by animal control on July 3. It was taken to the shelter, which was to serve as a temporary holding place. When an officer returned to the shelter that evening to retrieve the pig, he was met by Oakes, who informed the officer that he had given the pig to a friend to be taken to a butcher.

The officer then told Oakes to contact his friend and return the pig to the shelter but, as the officer later learned, it was too late. During that initial interaction, Oakes told the officer that the pig had been “feral” and that he had been “charged by the pig” at one point.

Surveillance footage taken from the shelter and presented to the court showed Oakes with the pig about 7 p.m. July 3, taking the pig from its shelter and putting a harness on it. The footage further showed Oakes walking the pig around and petting it. Officers said Oakes appeared to have an “altercation with the pig” when he attempted to subdue it and that 20 minutes after the pig first showed up on camera, it appeared that the pig had been stabbed somewhere out of frame.

A veterinary expert also testified that after the pig’s remains were returned to authorities, it appeared the pig had been stabbed at least 31 times, mostly around its neck.