Alison Agatha Lawrence, 57, from Florida, has been arrested after a worker at Orlando International Airport saw her acting strangely and made a disturbing discovery in a bin
An airport worker made the gruesome discovery of a dead dog which was allegedly drowned in a toilet and dumped in a bin by a passenger who was told she couldn't fly with the pet.
Alison Agatha Lawrence, 57, of Clermont, Florida, was reportedly at Orlando International Airport when she was not allowed to get a flight as she didn’t have the paperwork for the dog. It is claimed that during the incident last December 16 she decided to still catch the plane and in act of extreme cruelty, she killed the dog.
Authorities have said she drowned the dog in a toilet at the airport and then put the dead animal in a rubbish bin. The dead dog was found by a member of staff at the airport who told her supervisor and Orlando Police were called out with a warrant for the arrest of Lawrence later made.
READ MORE: Woman drowns poodle in airport toilet and crams it in bin just so she can board her flight
The employee in a police statement also reportedly said she saw “on her knees cleaning up a lot of water and a lot of dog food from the floor of the bathroom handicapped stall”. Lawrence was later arrested on aggravated cruelty charges at her home last Tuesday.
A medical examination found that the dog, believed to be called Tywinn, died from drowning. CCTV footage showed Lawrence exiting the women's toilets without the dog and then later at her gate.
Orlando Police have not released more information on the incident including what type of dog was Tywinn. But five hours after being booked into Lake County Jail, Lawrence was released on $5,000 bail, jail records show. Animal cruelty charges in Florida can lead up to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
It has not been revealed why Lawrence was travelling with the dog and the reason for her extreme actions. Her neighbours have said that she had a white poodle and would be seen walking locally with the dog.
They said that neither the dog or Lawrence had been seen recently with one local resident reportedly claiming: “Someone that would do such things has got to be disturbed upstairs.”
Neighbours Roy and Janet Fernandes reporteldy said they watched as police arrived at Lawrence’s home to make the arrest. “I kept looking out, wondering what was going on,” Janet Fernandes said.
“Then they left, then they came back. He said he heard a commotion going on outside. That must have been when they arrested her.” Meanwhile, Lawrence’s sister didn’t know anything about the allegations, nor her sister’s whereabouts, she told WFTV. She added that Lawrence didn’t have a phone.
After hearing about the incident, State Senator Tom Leek, who recently filed an animal cruelty offenses bill, said on the Senate floor: “This is yet another horrible example of why I filed [the bill] related to animal cruelty, which strengthens criminal penalties for those who do harm to innocent animals.”
He also said, according to ClickOrlando : “It is my commitment to have this good bill pass the Florida Senate and the Florida House of Representatives and sent to Governor Ron DeSantis for his signature.”
US authorities allow small pets to travel with owners in the cabin of the aircraft with the correct paperwork. They will need to be in carriers and have to be swabbed for explosives.
