TOLEDO, Ohio — A former West Michigan man was sentenced Thursday to prison for making videos of him abusing and killing dogs.
A federal judge in Ohio sentenced Lucas Russell Vanwoert, 27, to nearly 8 years in prison and 15 years of probation.
He was ordered to pay $9,000 in restitution and is banned from owning or possessing animals for the rest of his life.
Vanwoert lived in the Grand Rapids area and moved to Mercer County, Ohio in 2022.
A Kent County grand jury indicted him in 2022 on various child pornography and creation of animal crush video charges.
Court documents from a US District Court in Western Michigan explain that these so-called "animal crush" videos depict a dog being "sexually assaulted, impaled, and otherwise subjected to serious bodily injury and resulted in killing the dog."
A search warrant of his Celina, Ohio home in September 2022 found several electronic devices that had videos of child pornography, that depicted prepubescent children, as well as animal crush videos.
Investigators believe Vanwoert sexually abused, tortured and killed at least four dogs, and shared videos of his crimes with others around the world.
Agents from the Homeland Security Investigations in Detroit, Cleveland and Grand Rapids worked with law enforcement in Michigan and Ohio on the case.
“These crimes against animals and the possession of child sex abuse material are at a dangerous crossroads of targeting the vulnerable and the defenseless,” said HSI Detroit acting Special Agent in Charge Jared Murphey. “I am extremely proud of our HSI special agents and support personnel who along with our partners relentlessly pursued justice in this case. This predator’s crimes are grim and reprehensible, and the community is safer with him behind bars.”
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