Wilfredo O. Montano

NEW CUMBERLAND — A West Virginia thoroughbred horse trainer faces a dozen animal cruelty charges after Hancock County sheriff’s deputies seized six of his horses following up on an animal neglect tip.

According to Hancock County Sheriff Scott Gittings, Lt. Doug Wade went to a barn on Trotter Drive in New Cumberland Monday to investigate an animal neglect call the department had received over the weekend.

Accompanied by a representative from Mountaineer Casino, Racetrack and Resort, where Wilfredo O. Montano, 55, had been racing horses, Wade reported finding six severely malnourished and emaciated horses that were immediately seized.

As Wade explained to another media source, horses of this size usually weigh at least 1,100 pounds each, while these horses were around 600 pounds each.

Montano is their trainer, not the owner, according to the sheriff’s department.

Gittings said Montano, who has an Idaho address, was responsible for the six animals. According to online magistrate records, he is being charged with six counts each of animal cruelty for withholding the food and water plus another six counts of animal cruelty for withholding medical treatment.

With the six animals in the custody of authorities, Gittings said the horses will be re-examined.

Under state law, such charges are misdemeanors, with those found guilty facing penalties of fines between $300 and $2,000, or up to six months in jail, or both, for each count.

Hancock County Magistrate Omeka Petteway is scheduled to oversee Montano’s initial court appearance at 9 a.m. Wednesday.

Montano is being held in the West Virginia Northern Regional Jail in lieu of posting a $24,000 bond.