Groomer surrenders, adopts, then sells dogs within hours in puppy mill scheme, cops say
An Indiana pet groomer adopted 343 dogs, mostly purebred, over the last five years as part of a scheme run by a former animal control supervisor to defraud the county, officials said.
Jamie Hubiak, owner of Specialty Pet Grooming, Daycare and Boarding in Evansville, Indiana, was arrested on Jan. 29 and faces three felony charges, including corrupt business influence, theft and conspiracy to commit theft, according to an Indiana State Police news release.
Hubiak is accused of helping former Warrick County Animal Control supervisor Danielle Barnes steal at least $102,900 in veterinary services from Warrick county, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Investigators said they have not yet been able to determine how much Hubiak or Barnes profited from the sale of purebreds dogs.
McClatchy News reached out to Specialty Pet Grooming, Daycare and Boarding Feb. 1 for comment but did not immediately hear back. Attorney information for Hubiak was not listed in court records.
McClatchy News reached out to Barnes’ attorney for comment Feb. 1 but did not immediately hear back.
The scheme
Working with Barnes, Hubiak would acquire purebred dogs from various places and then surrender them to county shelters, according to the affidavit.
Once they were surrendered, they would become the property of the county, and they would receive veterinary services they needed, investigators said.
After the dogs received veterinary treatment, Hubiak would adopt them and go on to sell them through her business, officials said.
Less than an hour would pass sometimes between when Hubiak surrendered the dogs and when she adopted them, investigators said.
This process, or some version of it, played out many times over the last five years, according to investigators.
Because investigators said Hubiak surrendered the dogs first, the county paid for veterinary services, which average between $300 and $450 per dog, according to the affidavit.
The role of Danielle Barnes
In 2012, Barnes established a non-profit organization called Warrick County Animal Guardians, or WAG, according to the affidavit.
WAG’s purpose was to support local shelters and find foster homes for animals, investigators said.
Barnes is accused of leveraging her position and access to county resources to transfer purebred dogs from around the county to her non-profit organization. Investigators said she would then sell them for profit or place them with fosters like Hubiak who would surrender them and start the process of obtaining free veterinary services before selling the dogs.
A witness told investigators that Barnes is involved in a multi-state puppy mill where she sells purebred dogs on the east and west coasts for top dollar, according to the affidavit.
More than 1,000 animals went in and out of Warrick County Animal Control during 2022 and 2023, but an examination of adoption records revealed only a handful of fees were paid to Warrick County Animal Control, police said.
Investigators believe Barnes was depositing adoption fees for the dogs she took in through WAG into a WAG bank account or keeping it herself, the affidavit said.
At Barnes’ residence, investigators found a 2017 Jaguar car, tens of thousands of dollars in designer clothing and jewelry and photo evidence of luxury trips, believed to have been purchased with stolen funds, records show.
Investigators were not able to determine exactly how many animals were transferred to WAG and then sold at a profit, as records are incomplete, but they believe the number to be in the hundreds, according to the affidavit.
Barnes was arrested on Dec. 13 and charged with theft and possession of a legend drug.
Additional charges were brought against Barnes on Jan. 28, including corrupt business influence, official misconduct, ghost employment and conspiracy to commit theft, according to a Jan. 28 Indiana State Police news release.
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