(COLDWATER) - An animal rights organization is asking for an investigation to be done at a Coldwater based business.
Branch County Interim Prosecutor Nora Geiger says her office received a formal complaint by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, asking for a criminal investigation into an employee at Clemins Food Group in Coldwater on allegations of animal cruelty. PETA is demanding that the case be investigated and if necessary, criminal charges be filed against a Clemens worker who is accused of viciously beating pigs with a paddle.
PETA Vice President of Evidence Analysis Daniel Paden says they are bypassing Federal prosecution channels in this matter, because a slaughterhouse has not been investigated by a Federal agency for animal abuse since 2007.
A U.S. Department of Agriculture inspection report goes into detail about an incident at the Clemens Plant. A Federal inspector says a Clemens employee was seen "hitting hogs excessively" by raising his arm to shoulder height with a bent elbow to strike the animals with significant force.
The inspector says that other pigs in the area bore physical marks resembling the herding paddle, and immediately notified the plant manager.
Similar allegations were made by PETA against the Coldwater Clemens facility in September of 2023.