A man has been arrested after he was caught cowering in a barn alongside an elderly pony he had allegedly tied up and raped, Fox29 reports.
Michael Riego was discovered in the corner of a barn in Wilmington, Delaware, after New Castle County police set up surveillance cameras to catch the serial attacker.
Police say that they were first informed about attacks on miniature horses at the New Castle County Carousel Park and Equestrian Center back in September, when staff found one of their animals with a cord tied around their legs, just above the hoof.
A news report on Riego's arrest can be seen below:The 20-year-old mare was discovered with a length of cord tied around her legs and left in noticeable pain.
Sadly, this was not an isolated incident.
Another incident left a 17-year-old black and white mare struggling to walk after she suffered injuries to her rear legs.
And on Monday, April 20, police were informed that a frail 31-year-old mare had been tied up and assaulted in the dead of night.
After reviewing security footage, police spotted an unknown man entering the barn after midnight on the nights in question. The detectives determined they were dealing with the same suspect on each occasion.
In the surveillance footage from the April 20 attack, investigators say the male suspect retrieving a feed bucket from the barn and entering the mare's stall.
Officials then say that the suspect could be seen tying up the rear legs of the mare, removing articles of clothing, and ultimately sexually assaulting the horse. The suspect was unable to be identified due to clothing over his face.
Then, on early Thursday morning, detectives were conducting surveillance of the stables and once again saw a male suspect looking into another pony's stall. The suspect entered the stall and proceeded to tie up the rear legs of the pony.
When police arrived, they found 31-year-old Michael Riego hiding in the stall.
Riego was arrested and charged with two counts of felony bestiality and two counts of felony burglary in the third degree.
The investigation is ongoing.
