An upstate New York-based harness horse racing trainer allegedly struck a horse named Finish Line and fractured the animal’s skull, which required it to be euthanized, police said, according to The Associated Press (AP).
26-year-old Frederick Bourgault was called before a court Tuesday on two different charges in connection to a race horse‘s death. The alleged event took place at Crawford’s Pine Bush Training Facility in July 2023, according to Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler, per The AP. The facility is located 60 miles from New York City.
Bourgault allegedly took a hard object and hit the horse with it, which fractured the animal’s skull and led to it being euthanized, according to a Hoovler social media post, the outlet reported.
Veterinary experts later exhumed and examined the horse as requested by investigators, according to The AP.
After PETA filed a complaint, Frederick Bourgault, the cruel harness racing trainer who allegedly beat his horse so badly he had to be euthanized, was arrested and charged with two felonies in connection to the horse’s death.https://t.co/hCw7cLevn1
— PETA (@peta) January 31, 2024
Back in November, Bourgault was hit with two felony charges in an indictment, with one of the charges being second-degree criminal mischief. A judge ordered Bourgault, who is originally from Canada, to give up his passport Tuesday as the case goes on, The AP reported.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) pointed out that Bourgault had been suspended or fined before for both kicking horses and excessively using a whip, according to The AP. (RELATED: What The Hell?: Winning Racehorse Tests Positive For Meth (And PETA Is Involved)
“Bourgault is a repeat offender who should have been booted from racing years ago and banned the first time he whipped a horse after a race was over,” said Kathy Guillermo, the senior vice president of PETA, in a press release.
It’s not currently known whether or not Bourgault had a lawyer, according to The AP.