Veteran with PTSD, boyfriend, shoot service dog tied to tree, sheriff says
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (WJBK) - A former soldier who was medically discharged from the Army is facing a felony charge of animal cruelty and conspiracy after video was posted online that appears to show her and her boyfriend tying her service dog to a tree and shooting him multiple times.
Marinna Rollins, 23, and Jerren Heng, 26, were arrested in Fayetteville, North Carolina, on Tuesday.
Citing a police report, WTVD in North Carolina reports that Rollins and Heng took the male pit bull named Camboui into a wooded area last week. When they got there, police said she tied the dog to a tree and then shot him with a rifle five times.
WTVD reports that Heng then asked Rollins to let him shoot the dog, too, and he then shot it five more times.
Rollins then dragged the dead dog to a shallow grave and said goodbye. Here's what WTVD reported she said to the dog:
"It's been real ... I love you, you're my puppy, you're a good puppy, but...,"
She then pushes the dog into the grave and a man is heard saying "kind of put him a little deeper in there," the TV station reported. Rollins posted a photo of her dog on Facebook with the text that she "was sad that her dog had to go to a happier place," the station said.
Video of the shooting was obtained by WTVD and the Fayetteville Observer. In those videos, both Rollins and Heng could be heard laughing after the dog was shot.
According to the Fayetteville Observer, Cam was originally adopted by Rollins' husband. He had recently separated from Rollins when he adopted the dog and he named him Huey. He says that Huey was extremely protective and loyal to him.
Rollins' husband is in the Army and was assigned to South Korea. He told the paper that Rollins begged him to keep Huey. He let her keep him and now says he feels sick about it.
While in South Korea, Rollins changed the dog's name to Camboui, simply known as Cam, and she got him certified as a support animal for post-traumatic stress disorder. Friends told the paper that she was diagnosed with other mental health issues.
The Observer says she joined the Army in 2014, served as multimedia illustrator in the Army, and spent time in South Korea. In January of 2017, she medically retired from the Army.
It was unclear when her and Heng began dating.
Heng is also in the Army. A friend of Rollins told the paper that Heng was very controlling and 'didn't like her having friends'.
In April, she started posting on Facebook that she was trying to find Cam a new home, the paper said. On April 17, she wrote that she had a great last day with Cam and he was going to a new home. Heng replied with a smiley-face emoji and also wrote that "He's going to have a such a great new life".
Her Facebook page is no longer available on the social media site.
Both Rollins and Heng are charged with animal cruelty. Bond was initially set at $10,000 each but was later raised to $25,000.