Approximately 80 animals shot in Prunedale early Tuesday morning; Monterey County Sheriff’s Department confirms

MONTEREY COUNTY, Calif. (KION-TV) -- The Monterey County Sheriff's Office confirmed Tuesday that a suspect has been arrested after firing multiple shots from multiple hand- and long guns at 3:25 a.m. in a residential area of Prunedale.

According to reports, this happened on the 16000 block of Avery Lane in Prunedale, and about 80 animals were murdered as a result of the shooting. Among the animals were rabbits, guinea pigs, chicken, miniature horses, goats and a variety of other types of birds, according to the sheriff's office.

The Monterey County Sheriff's Office began receiving multiple calls about numerous shots fired in the area, and the S.W.A.T. team responded due to visibility and terrain limitations, according to the sheriff's office. Sheriff's deputies said that it took about three hours to located the suspect, but that he was taken into custody around 6:30 a.m.

The suspect is identified as 39-year-old Vicente Joseph Arroyo of Salinas, according to the Monterey County Sheriff's Office. And, a motive is still under investigation. Arroyo was charged with five felons and his bail went from originally $50,000 to $1,000,000, according to the Sheriff's Office.

A curfew was placed on residents in the area while deputies investigated the scene, and the order was lifted later Tuesday morning after the suspect's arrest, according to the Monterey County Sheriff's Department. The sheriff's office also said that Seaside Fire and Gonzalez Police teamed up to locate where the shooting was coming from because the shot echos made it difficult to pin-point.

Almost all of the animals involved in the shooting died and the SPCA recovered a few injured animals that were later euthanized due to the severity of their injuries, police report. In a statement, the SPCA said:

"What happened on Tuesday was a tragic situation. The SPCA Humane Investigations team assisted the Monterey County Sheriff's Department at the horrific, heartbreaking scene. All the animals involved were found deceased except for five severely injured parakeets who needed to be humanely euthanized to end their suffering. It was a tough, sad day but we're hoping our work collecting evidence will help the Sheriff's Department with this case and prevent this from happening again."

This investigation is ongoing and the sheriff's office is saying that there is currently no threat to the community. They said more details will be released as they become available.