MARATHON, Fla. — Two men from Miami were arrested over the weekend after deputies discovered they had an injured Key deer in the back of their truck.
Yoankis Pena, 38, and 45-year-old Andres Valdes were arrested and charged with cruelty to animals and taking, possessing or selling a federally designated endangered species, the Monroe County Sheriff's Office said in a statement.
Key deer are found only in the Florida Keys, where their population is estimated at 700-800 in total, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Deputies say the truck was pulled over just before 2 a.m. Sunday because it wasn't staying in its lane. They soon learned why: "An injured Key deer was inside the vehicle on top of a cooler, lawn chairs and other miscellaneous objects," the sheriff's office said in the statement.
The men allegedly told law enforcement they hit the Key deer just north of the Seven Mile Bridge on U.S. Highway 1 and figured it was dead. Upon realizing it was still alive, they reportedly told deputies they decided to take it to a veterinarian in Miami and didn't bother calling 911, the FWC or U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services.
Key deer don't typically live in the area where the two men said they hit the kidnapped animal, the sheriff's office said.
It was taken alive to federal officials on Big Pine Key to be treated by a veterinarian, the agency added. The deer will be released back into the wild if and when it can fully recover.
