R&B singer Jaheim put the ladies on a pedestal with his classic ballad “Put That Women First” but that motto apparently doesn’t apply to man’s best friend. Jaheim, whose full name is Jaheim Hoagland, was charged with animal cruelty after New Jersey police found multiple emaciated dogs at his home, including one that had to be euthanized, officials said.
Police were called to the Grammy nominated singer’s Hillsborough, New Jersey home on Labor Day on a report of a puppy in distress, the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office said in a press release on Sept. 19. Officers also found six dogs in separate animal crates in the driveway of the home.
“One of the dogs located was initially unresponsive in a water filled crate and subsequently had to be euthanized,” prosecutors said. “Additional dogs were found inside of separate crates which were partially filled with several inches of water and dog feces.”
Jaheim was home when police took the dogs and arrested him on an unrelated Somerset County probation violation warrant as well as two active municipal court warrants out of Hillsborough Township and Newark, New Jersey. A total of 15 dogs were found at the singer’s home which included mixed breed Pit Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire Terriers, and one mixed breed Boxer. The “Anything” hitmaker was charged with third-degree animal cruelty and failure to provide necessary care to an animal. Hillsborough is located about 50 miles from Manhattan.
Officers reported that the dogs were left without access to food or water and two were taken to an emergency veterinarian clinic for treatment. The surviving dogs were transported to Long Hill Kennel in Hillsborough. Fourteen dogs survived but one of the Pit Bull Terriers was put down.
