80 animals killed in shooting spree in Prunedale, California

A California man was arrested Tuesday after a three-hour shootout that left dozens of animals dead and forced residents to shelter in their homes, the Monterey County Sheriff's Office said.

Vicente Joseph Arroyo, 39, was charged with, among other things, cruelty to animals and intentional discharge of a firearm with gross negligence after, according to officials, he indiscriminately fired several weapons and killed about 80 animals.

Authorities received calls around 3:25 a.m. Tuesday reporting gunshots in the community of Prunedale, about 38 miles south of San Jose, the sheriff's office said. Officers who arrived at the scene continued to hear gunshots and urged residents within a five-mile radius to seek shelter.

Officers could hear the firing of various weapons in an area with dense vegetation, but were unable to immediately locate the shooter, the sheriff's office said.

As the sun rose, a drone finally located Arroyo in a vineyard next to a crashed vehicle, according to the sheriff's office. He was taken into custody without further incident.

Officials said several animals were shot, including miniature horses, goats, rabbits, guinea pigs, chickens, ducks and other bird species. Some animals survived the shooting but had to be euthanized due to the severity of their injuries.

A search of Arroyo's home and adjacent buildings reportedly yielded five rifles, a shotgun, a pistol and about 2,000 rounds of ammunition. The pistol and one of the rifles reportedly had no serial numbers.

“There is no doubt that the warrant our officers and detectives executed that resulted in the seizure of these additional weapons has made our community safer,” Monterey County Sheriff Tina Nieto said in the release. “I am confident we have prevented another tragedy in the future.”

Arroyo is being held on $1,000,000 bail and is scheduled for arraignment on September 18. HuffPost could not immediately locate an attorney representing him.