Photo: Contributed

UPDATE 12:55 p.m.

A prominent and previously very well-respected pharmacy owner in Penticton has pleaded guilty in a high-profile animal cruelty case following the seizure of three dogs from her property in early 2017.

Joelle Mbamy, 57, entered a guilty plea to one non-criminal count of causing an animal to continue to be in distress Thursday in Penticton court. She was handed a $1,000 fine and 10-year ban on owning animals in addition to $5,000 in fines already paid to the SPCA.

With the guilty plea, the Crown stayed criminal charges of causing unnecessary pain and suffering of an animal and failing to provide the necessities to an animal. A trial on the matter was scheduled for Thursday and avoided.

“How we treat animals that are in our care, at our mercy, is a very good barometer for a person's character, and you didn’t do very well on that,” said Judge Gregory Koturbash, after hearing the accolades and volunteer work Mbamy was previously known for in the community.

Crown prosecutor Alex Janse told the courtroom Mbamy had been on the SPCA’s radar since 2011 due to complaints from the public about the treatment of her dogs.

Seven different “notices of distress” were issued to Mbamy for various forms of neglect, which would result in a cycle of temporary compliance and another notice.

In January 2017 in response to a new round of complaints, Mbamy failed to respond to orders from the SPCA to improve the dogs' living conditions.  On Jan. 23, 2017 a search warrant was executed and the three dogs were seized.

“Dogs were noted to be wet, dirty, there was an overwhelming stench of feces,” Janse said, adding the dogs were locked out in a 4’x8’ kennel with no food or shelter.

Two of the dogs were completely emaciated while the other was deemed “very thin” by a veterinarian.

Janse acknowledged Mbamy’s very busy schedule as a small business owner and single mother, and said the Crown is not alleging she ever intentionally caused harm to the animals.

“My client is a tremendous asset to the community,” defence lawyer Julian Van Der Walle said. “She does group fitness instruction, she’s a personal trainer… does fundraiser regularly for breakfast programs for the local students… she works doing volunteer programs for the homeless.”

While the Crown and defence agreed on the $1,000 penalty, there was some disagreement on the length of the pet ban. The defence argued for five years, while the Crown successfully asked for a decade.

Mbamy declined to speak during the sentencing hearing and avoided media on the way out of the courthouse.

The dogs have since been rehabilitated and adopted out.

ORIGINAL 12:05 p.m.

The owner of a Penticton pharmacy has pleaded guilty to an animal cruelty charge after leaving three dogs to freeze outdoors in 2017.

On Thursday, 57-year-old Joelle Mbamy plead guilty to causing an animal to continue to be in distress in Penticton court.

She had also been charged with causing unnecessary pain and suffering to an animal, and failing to provide necessaries to an animal — charges that were dropped with the guilty plea. 

Mbamy will also have a 10-year ban on owning animals and will pay a $1,000 fine — which piles onto a $5,000 fine she already paid to the SPCA when the dogs were seized from her property.

A two-day trial was expected to begin on Thursday morning before Mbamy entered a guilty plea.

More information to come.