SCREVEN COUNTY, Ga. () – The Screven County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a man after several dead animals were found on his property.

The sheriff’s office said they received complaints about livestock in the 2400 block of Jenk Hill Road in Sylvania, Georgia. When deputies investigated, they found dead animals within sight of a public roadway…including two dead cows. Eleven living cows and two goats were also found malnourished.

After a through investigation that included animal control, a veterinarian, and a Department of Agriculture Inspector, it was determined that 73-year-old Jonathan Clarence Roberts failed to provide adequate food or water to the animals.

Law enforcement said the neglect caused the death of the 2 cows and additional cow carcasses appeared to be left to rot where they died.

The remaining livestock was seized from the property and transferred to a location where they could be cared for.

Roberts is charged with:

• 2 counts of Aggravated Cruelty to Animals
• 11 counts of Animal Neglect
• 1 count of Abandonment of a Dead Animal