Rescue Ink is on the case looking for whoever killed Emma and Luna

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Rescue Ink, the tattooed, motorcycle-riding street toughs
from New York who track down animal abusers, are on the case in Chester County.
They’re helping to find the killer or killers of two German shorthaired
pointers, Emma and Luna. The dogs—family pets—were found shot to death along
the railroad tracks at Brinton’s Bridge Road in Pennsbury Township in October.

The members of Rescue Ink are internationally known from the
National Geographic Channel TV show “Rescue Ink Unleashed.” They held a press
conference at the Chester County SPCA on Jan. 29, a town hall meeting at the
Chadds Ford Historical Society that night and were at Hank’s Place Saturday
morning, Jan. 30.

Pennsylvania State Police and Humane Society officers from
the SPCA have been investigating the case since the dogs were found Oct. 25
but, according to SPCA spokesman Richard Britton, the leads are now cold and
have dried up. The SPCA is offering a reward of $50,000 for information leading
to the arrest and conviction of whoever killed the dogs.

Britton said the animals were shot execution style—through
the head at close range— then laid out tail to tail on the railroad tracks. Rescue
Ink was called in to assist the investigation and bring awareness to the case.

Member Joe Panz—who says he’s been a street guy all his
life—said before the Friday afternoon press conference that there are things
his group can do that the police can’t do.

“A lot of times people are more inclined to talk to us
because we’re not authority figures. When an authority figure shows up, the
threat of arrest is very apparent so people are more inclined to open up to us
because we aren’t authorities. Also, we have a different way of approaching and
talking to people,” Panz said. “We’re street guys. We know who to talk to. We
know where to go. We know what to say.”

He said the first order of business in the Emma and Luna
case would be to canvas the area, talk to people and “knock over some trees,
beat some bushes and see what comes out.”

Another member of Rescue Ink, Big Ant, said the group’s
approach is different because they’ll show up in an area riding their
motorcycles or driving a hot rod instead of a police patrol car. The personal
vehicles help break the ice and get people to start talking.

He said their success rate has been good.

“We’ve put a lot of dents in a lot of cases,” Big Ant said.
“We got them solved because we know who to talk to, we know where to go.”

He added that he sees no difference in working a rural area
like Southern Chester County as opposed to an urban area like New York City.

“The crime is the same… An abuser is an abuser, that’s it,”
he said.

Group members were reluctant to get into specifics of the
case, but told the packed house at the town hall meeting in the Historical
Society Visitors’ Center that they want families to talk about the case and
that they want to be able to talk to students in the schools. Panz said that’s
likely how information will ultimately surface to find the killer.

Rescue Ink does more than just rescue abused animals or
bring abusers to justice. Big Ant said they also assist battered women who are
reluctant to go to a shelter because there is a pet in their home and they’d
rather stay with an abusive husband than leave their animals. Ant said Rescue
Ink will get the animal so the woman in question will go to a shelter, but then
give the animal back to her once she’s resettled. Battered women’s shelters
won’t take the pets.

Panz said the group also does more than protect animals from
people, but also protects people from people. Citing an FBI report, he
explained that people who abuse other people—pedophiles and serial
killers—started out by abusing animals. Panz said that nabbing them early might
prevent human murders.

“We’re not experts,” Panz said. “We’re just trying to make a
difference.”

He told of a case in New York where a woman would punish her
children by killing their pets, sometimes making the kids help. For a 10-year
period, the woman would buy puppies from a pet store. In total, more than 40
dogs were found buried in the back yard. Panz said Rescue Ink broke the case
because they were the only people who listened to and believed one of the
woman’s children.

Member George, or “G” as the others refer to him, advised
people who want a dog to avoid the pet shops because they usually get their
dogs from puppy mills. He said to adopt from a shelter or buy from a reputable
breeder.

The group has been responsible for starting marches against
puppy mills in Lancaster County and stopped a man in New York from throwing
cats off his roof.

Rescue Ink came into existence five years ago. It exists
because, as Big Ant said: “Animals have no voice. We don’t mind speaking for
them.”

On Saturday morning the members were out at Hank’s Place
handing out copies of the reward poster.

Also attending the press conference and the town hall
meeting was Paul Bartholomew, one of the owners of Emma and Luna. Bartholomew
thanked the audience at the towns hall meeting for their interest and support.

About Rich Schwartzman

Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.

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