RIDGEWAY – A Ridgeway man, Christopher Matthew Pauley, 18, is accused of taking animals from the area near his residence on E. Peach Road in Ridgeway and torturing them methodically over several days before killing them, according to a Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office incident report dated Dec. 24, 2016, and obtained last week by The Voice. Pauley was arrested again on March 10, 2017, on a charge of witness intimidation in connection with the animal abuse charge.
No incident report was released to the media by the Fairfield County Sheriff’s office after either incident.
Pauley was first arrested on a felony charge of ill treatment of animals in general, torture on Dec. 26, 2016. The incident is reported to have taken place 10 days earlier on Dec. 16. According to the report, a witness stated that Pauley said
he had recently “worked on” a cat over a period of several days, hanging it from a tree in a black trash bag, beating it and setting it on fire. The witness said Pauley later showed her a black trash bag containing the cat’s remains and that the bag was taken to her home.
The report states that the witness later showed the bag containing the cat’s remains to an officer who reported that the cat was “extremely mutilated and appeared to be singed on its face and front paws.” The witness told the officer, according to the report, that Pauley kept his ‘tools’ under his residence.
When the officer visited the back yard of Pauley’s home on Dec. 24, he reportedly found animal remains, a gasoline can and other items consistent with what the witness had described as Pauley’s ‘tools’ – a large red axe with dried fur attached, a pink lighter and a blue pocket knife. The report states that the officer also collected fur and portions of a black trash bag.
The report states that when questioned by a Fairfield County Sheriff’s Deputy on Dec. 26, Pauley said he had found a black cat dead on the side of the road, brought it home and then beat it and set it on fire. But the officer’s report states that a black trash bag he found in Pauley’s back yard on Dec. 24, containing wet animal remains consistent with those he had obtained from the witness, had puncture holes, indicating the cat was alive when placed in the bag.
When asked by the officer why he had done this, Pauley responded that he liked the feeling and that it was like a dream, according to the report which also stated that Pauley told the witness that he would, “start doing it to people.”
After his arrest on Dec. 26, Pauley was jailed at the Fairfield County Detention Center. He was released on March 8, 2017, after posting a $5,000 bond. On the evening of his release, Pauley allegedly threatened a witness in connection with the animal torture charge. The report states that Pauley confronted the witness at the Dollar General store on Highway 34 in Ridgeway, grabbed her arm and took her keys and cell phone. A store employee called law enforcement, but Pauley had fled the scene before officers arrived. Two days later, Pauley was again arrested and jailed at the Detention Center. Bond was initially set at $20,000, but later reduced to $10,000. Pauley posted bond on April 20, 2017, and was released with the stipulation that he must reside with family, cannot have contact with the witness he allegedly threatened and cannot leave his residence except for doctor appointments, to meet with his attorney or to attend court, work or church. He also must wear a GPS monitoring device.
Pauley is being represented by the Fairfield County Public Defender’s Office for the Sixth Judicial Circuit. No trial date has been set.
