Man convicted of molesting a dead deer and shooting horse to have sex with it 'assaulted female cop after shoplifting from Walmart'

Bryan James Hathaway, 25, was charged with assaulting off-duty policewoman



Officer Kody Vedder was shopping with her daughter at the time of the incident

Vedder spotted Hathaway looking shifty in the backseat of a car and tried to detain him

Police seized three brand-new cell phones and other equipment from the car where Hathaway was sitting



Man was convicted in 2006 of molesting the carcass of a deer he found in a ditch while biking

in 2005, Hathaway pleaded no contest to shooting an Arabian horse to have sex with it



A man from Superior, Wisconsin, who gained international notoriety after being convicted in 2006 of molesting the carcass of a dead deer was arrested this week for allegedly assaulting a female police officer.

Bryan James Hathaway, 25, was arraigned Wednesday on four charges stemming from an incident that took place at the Hermantown Walmart on Monday night.

Hathaway is accused of assaulting Officer Kody Vedder, obstructing legal process, fleeing on foot and receiving stolen property. He is being held in the St. Louis County Jail on $20,000 bail.

Confrontation: Bryan James Hathaway, right, has been charged with assaulting off-duty police officer Kody Vedder, left, when she tried to detain him after spotting the 25-year-old acting suspiciously



According to the criminal complaint, Vedder was off duty and shopping at Walmart with her 11-year-old daughter after getting off work Monday evening, Duluth News Tribune reported.

The officer was wearing a black T-shirt with the word POLICE emblazoned across the front and back of the shirt in bold white letters.

With her shopping done, Vedder was walking back to her car when she spotted Hathaway in the backseat of a Lincoln Town Car parked next to her.



The complaint states that the officer thought that the man appeared suspicious by the way he was repeatedly ducking down and watching out for passersby.

Vedder got out of her car, knocked on the window of the vehicle where Hathaway was sitting and pointed to the lettering on her shirt. She then told the 25-year-old that she is a cop and instructed him not to move.



Crime scene: The incident happened in the parking lot of the Hermantown Walmart in Wisconsin

The officer called 911 and asked for police response, but before the reinforcement had a chance to arrive, Hathaway tried to make a run for it, according to the complaint.



Vedder grabbed the suspect by the back of his shirt and attempted to drag him down to the ground, but the complaint states that Hathaway wrenched himself out of her grasp and pushed her to the pavement.



Vedder suffered scratches and bruises to her tail bone in the confrontation that required an X-ray.

By that point, officers from three nearby police departments arrived on the scene and apprehended Hathaway near a Volkswagen dealership.

When police searched the car where Vedder first spotted Hathaway, they recovered a backpack containing two Android cell phones in boxes, one of which still had the security device from Walmart around it.



Bizarre case: In 2006, Hathaway, then 18, was convicted of having sex with the carcass of a deer he found in a ditch while biking

Officers also seized a Virgin Mobile LG cell phone and a new power cord in a plastic bag from the same store.

This incident comes less than six years after Hathaway was arrested for having sex with a dead deer.

On October 11, 2006, then-18-year-old Hathaway stumbled upon the animal’s carcass while biking along Stinson Avenue, Chicago Sun-Time reported.



Repeat offender: In 2005, Hathaway pleaded no contest to shooting an Arabian horse for the purpose of having sex with the animal

Hathaway told detectives that he was aroused by the sight of the deer in the ditch. He admitted moving the carcass into the woods and assaulting it.

‘When I was done, I was upset with myself,’ Hathaway said in a statement to police at the time. ‘I know having sex with animals is wrong. But I can't help myself and I need help.’

He pleaded no contest to a charge of sexual gratification with an animal and was ordered to undergo psychological treatment after receiving a probationary sentence.

In April of 2005, Hathaway pleaded no contest to a felony animal mistreatment charge in connection with the shooting of an Arabian horse in Douglas County.

According to the criminal complaint in that case, Hathaway told investigators that he gunned down the animal, a 26-year-old gelding named Bambrick, for the purpose of having sex with it.

However, Hathaway never got a chance to carry out his plan because he was scared off by a neighbor who heard the gunshot and walked in that direction.

‘I've never run across a personality like this,’ said Detective Sgt. Ed Anderson of the Douglas County, who investigated the crime. ‘I've never seen this type of behavior before.’