The cause of death has been confirmed for a Las Vegas veterinarian who was found dead in a lake after being filmed kicking a horse in the face.
Dr. Shawn Frehner, 56, was found dead on April 18 in the waters of Lake Mead, a vast reservoir stretching across Nevada and Arizona.
According to PEOPLE, authorities launched a search after locating his truck and several personal items abandoned near the shoreline the week before.
His identity was confirmed on April 21, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported, after he'd been reported missing on April 6.
Frehner had disappeared shortly after a disturbing video circulated online showing him physically assaulting a horse during a medical procedure.
The footage, which sparked outrage on social media, was recorded by Shawna Gonzalez, a longtime client of Frehner’s whose horse, Big Red, suffered the abuse.
“I heard [my mother] yell, ‘Oh my God. He just kicked him',” Gonzalez told 8NewsNow. “Oh my God, Mom, he’s choking... He wrapped the horse around his neck three times, and he kicked him in the head.”
Gonzalez said Frehner had been treating her animals since August. Following the incident, she revealed Big Red had sustained serious injuries to his head, including abrasions to the skull, which would require thousands of dollars in veterinary care.
Frehner's cause of death was revealed by the Clark County Coroner and Medical Examiner, as cited by KTNV, with the report stating that he had injected himself with the euthanasia drug Pentobarbital and died from drowning.
The coroner's office revealed that Frehner's body had to be identified using dental records.
After the horrifying video of him kicking the horse in the face went viral, Frehner shared an apology on Facebook, defending his actions.
“I did not blatantly haul off and kick this horse as it appears in the video,” he wrote, per the 8NewsNow. “That was not my intention at all. It was done simply to get the horse in a better position so that he could breathe and get up and move, so I could again try to anesthetize.
“But yes, I did kick him right in the chin, and I very much do apologize and wish this never happened," he added.
At the time of his disappearance, Frehner was facing felony animal abuse charges.
Gonzalez said in a text to the publication that she was sorry to hear about Frehner’s death, adding: “I had no idea this would happen. But I was not the one bullying. I am not sorry for standing up for my horse. I am their voice and will continue to be.
“It’s horrible, I never, ever wished this upon him, I never wished this upon anybody,” Gonzalez continued. “This is not what I wanted in the end at all.”
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