Father, daughter charged with animal cruelty following discovery of viral video

A father and daughter have been arrested and charged in connection with a video that went viral on social media depicting a raccoon that had been apparently burned alive.

Sheriff’s deputies in Sarasota County arrested 30-year-old Alicia Kincheloe and 63-year-old Roddy Kinchloe on Thursday afternoon.

The man was charged with a single count of aggravated animal cruelty, while his daughter was similarly charged with an additional count of tampering with physical evidence. Both have been released on bond, the sheriff’s office said.

In a news release on Friday, the sheriff’s office reported:

Members of the agency’s Agricultural Unit were notified Aug.  11 of a Snapchat video that showed a small raccoon in a trash bin. The raccoon looked at the camera and was not showing any signs of aggression, however, the female narrator of the video stated the racoon was “mean.” Additional video clips showed a man hosing down the trash bin, which appears to be smoking while the woman says, “we just toasted his (expletive), who’s hungry?” The video then captured the inside of the trash bin where the charred remains of the animal can be seen on camera.

The following day, deputies met with Alicia Kinchloe at her home where she admitted to taking and posting the video however, she told deputies after returning from lunch that day, she found the trash bin smoldering. She went on to say she and and her father used a gas can that was filled with water in an attempt to extinguish the flames but once the trash bin began to “flare up,” Roddy used a nearby hose to put out the fire. Roddy corroborated the story to deputies. Later that day, deputies seized the gas can and tested the liquid inside which tested positive for being highly flammable.

Deputies identified nearby surveillance video which captured the incident and showed a woman reach into the trash bin using a pitchfork to pierce the dead raccoon and remove it. Video surveillance also captured another woman arriving just after the animal was removed. When interviewed by deputies, that woman reported she went to meet Alicia after seeing the concerning Snapchat videos.

That woman told deputies information that implicated the pair.