Nurse accused of poisoning neighbor’s cats, pregnant chihuahua to death

LAKELAND, Fla. — A woman is facing charges in connection with the deaths of her neighbor’s pet cats and dog in Lakeland, Florida, officials say.

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Polk County Sheriff’s Office said Tamesha Knighten, 51, a licensed nurse, has been charged with three counts of felony animal cruelty and a count of depositing poison in a public area. Officials say that Knighten purposely poisoned her neighbor’s two cats and their pregnant Chihuahua. Since the Chihuahua was pregnant, eight unborn puppies were also killed.

Investigators were contacted when the two pet cats named Luna and Pancake, died within hours of one another, according to WFTV. The cats were found choking, foaming at the mouth and were in pain. Hours later, the pregnant Chihuahua named Daisy, was also found dead by the house.

The victims reportedly told deputies that Knighten had on multiple occasions threatened to poison their pets if they went into her yard, the news outlet reported. They claimed that the day their pets died, they saw Knighten pacing along her yard by their shared fence. She also yelled at their children who were outside playing.

Deputies reportedly found a Styrofoam bowl by the victims’ yard with a white substance mixed with “a white meaty substance mixed with a dark colored material.” according to WFTV. Investigators obtained surveillance video from Knighten that showed her putting on a blue glove, and holding the Styrofoam bowl.

A chemical analysis was conducted on the material in the Styrofoam bowl and confirmed that the pets had eaten Phorate. Phorate is a pesticide found in insecticides, according to the news station.

“This suspect, despite all evidence to the contrary, repeatedly denied killing her neighbor’s pets, even telling our detectives that she’s a nurse and had too much to lose. Well guess what? These people lost their beloved pets in a most horrific way, and she lost her freedom by going to jail. It takes a cold-hearted person to poison and kill two cats and a pregnant dog—it’s hard to imagine how a person in the medical field could do such a thing.” said Grady Judd, Sheriff

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