Two men face cruelty charges in October deaths of 18 horses

The Minnesota owner of 18 Belgian draft horses killed in an October crash near Wadsworth faces cruelty charges in Lake County.

A Lake County judge has issued an arrest warrant for breeder Keith Tongen, 49, of Brownton, Minn.

On Oct. 27, 59 horses Tongen owned were being driven from an auction in Indiana to Minnesota when the double-decker trailer they were in reportedly ran a red light, hit another vehicle and flipped over.

The driver, James Anderson, 34, of McLeod, N.D., was issued traffic citations and was named a co-defendant in the case.

The trailer was intended for the transportation of pigs and cattle, yet the horses were packed into it "in such a way so that the animals were unable to stand upright or move properly within the trailer," the warrant reads.

Eighteen horses were killed or euthanized as a result of the crash.

Tongen is charged with four misdemeanor counts of cruel treatment to animals and one misdemeanor count of failure to provide humane care and treatment to animals.

He faces up to one year in prison for each of the four cruelty counts, and up to six months at the Lake County jail on a humane care charge. His bond is set at $100,000.

Tongen's wife, Jane, said Friday that authorities have not formally notified them of the charges.

Anderson has a court hearing at 1:30 p.m. Monday on the traffic tickets at the Lake County branch court in Round Lake.

Lake County sheriff's department Sgt. Christopher Thompson said police won't go to Minnesota to arrest Tongen.

"If he's not here, we can't serve it on him," Thompson said. "If he is stopped by police there, they would advise him that he has a warrant in Illinois."