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MCHORSE TRAINER ARRESTED FOR ANIMAL CRUELTY
On Friday, January 16, 2026, Marion County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) Agriculture Detective James Manning arrested 34-year-old Benito Cotto Colon for Animal Cruelty.
On January 15, 2026, Agriculture Investigator Justin McClure received an email from a horse owner advising that she had a video of Cotto Colon kicking and punching her Bay Paso Fino horse and aggressively pulling on its bridle. The reportee stated she hired Cotto Colon approximately a year and a half ago to train and care for her horse. Investigator McClure viewed the video of the abuse and clearly observed Cotto Colon kicking the horse in the abdomen four times as the horse was showing obvious signs of distress and fear during the incident.
Through further investigation, Investigator McClure located a Facebook post made by Cotto Colon, in which he admitted to being the person captured on video. In his post, he claims that the horse nearly threw him off before the video was taken and acknowledges that his behavior was not appropriate for horse training. Based on the evidence received and results of the investigation, probable cause was developed for Cotto Colon’s arrest. The MCSO Agriculture Unit responded with a veterinarian to assess the abused animal, who was found to be “healthy as a horse.”
Cotto Colon was located, placed under arrest, and transported to the Marion County Jail.
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