KITTERY, Maine — A York man, who police allege was under the influence of hallucinogenic mushrooms, is being charged with killing his cat on the side of the road on Sept. 2.
Jared Lafleche, 23, of 205 Birch Hill Road, now faces charges of aggravated cruelty to animals and unlawful possession of a scheduled drug stemming from an incident on Wilson Road, where a passerby alerted police to check on a suspicious male around 9:30 p.m. Sept. 2.
Kittery police Lt. John Desjardins said upon arrival, officers encountered Lafleche, who they believed to be under the influence of drugs. Further investigation revealed “he had just killed his cat on the side of the road,” Desjardins said, adding he allegedly killed the cat with force.
Police then determined Lafleche was under the influence of psilocybin mushrooms, he said. Lafleche’s vehicle was impounded, and he was transported to the York County Jail, where he remained Friday. A jail official said Lafleche was being held on $1,200 cash bail.
Desjardins called the arrest “a really bizarre case, unfortunate case.”
In 2015, Lafleche, of South Berwick at the time, was charged with driving to endanger after a car crash that injured five people and totaled three vehicles in York. Police alleged Lafleche was driving his vehicle “in a reckless manner” when the crash occurred. In the towns of Somersworth and Rochester, New Hampshire, Lafleche faced 2016 charges of prowling and being a fugitive from justice, and a 2015 charge of criminal mischief.
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