Police: Montville Man Tries to Free Dog From Pound

Trouble kept adding up last weekend for a Montville man who was suspected of cutting power to the Brixton Street dog pound and scaling a barbed wire fence Sept. 5 in an effort to liberate a small hound with “special needs,” police said.

The man was first arrested Sept. 3 by and locked up overnight on drug charges. He was taken into custody Sept. 4 in Hartford on suspicion of larceny. Early Labor Day he was found in the woods near the pound after officers responded to an alarm at 5:55 a.m., police said.

Total charges: six felonies, 11 misdemeanors.

Walter Scovish, 55, of 484 Old Colchester Road in Montville, demanded to check on the welfare of his dog before he was taken back to the West Hartford lockup, police said.

Besides three drug-related charges, Scovish faced three felony counts of third-degree burglary, first-degree criminal mischief and eight misdemeanors, police said. He was held on bail set at $75,000 for the dog pound break-in, $100 on the drug charges, according to court records.

On July 3, Scovish’s 2003 Taurus was impounded and his dog, Missy, was handed over to Animal Control after police said he was found with a bag of heroin and a hypodermic needle in an Albany Avenue parking lot in Bishop’s Corner. Police said he was continually concerned for Missy while in jail.

After getting out Sept. 4 on $2,500 bail, Hartford police said Scovish was charged about 5:15 p.m. with sixth-degree larceny for an incident at 150 Trumbull St. He was released around 7 p.m. on a promise to appear in Hartford Community Court.  

West Hartford police said Scovish was warned repeatedly not to visit the pound before it reopened after Labor Day.

“Scovish [said] his dog had special needs and that he was planning on sleeping at the dog pound until the Animal Control Officer arrived,” police said in an arrest report.

Scovish apparently asked for directions to the pound from an medic on Shield Street. Police said he broke into the fire department training grounds behind the pound and into a nearby landscaping business, allegedly stealing items.

When police arrived at the pound the power was off. Wires and an electrical meter were missing from the building, police said. A pair of blue boxer shorts was slung on a roof to the kennel. Police speculated that Scovish placed the underpants on the barbed wire to protect his hands.

There was no indication Scovish was able to reach Missy inside the kennel.

“[The dog] was scared,” West Hartford animal control supervisor Karen Jones said Wednesday. “[On Tuesday] a relative came by to pick her up. She was very happy to go.”