‘Appalling’ Maui case of a purloined pet pig, Eddie

*Reader caution: This story contains allegations of animal cruelty that some might find disturbing.

Thieves stole “Eddie,” a well-fed and beloved domesticated pig, from a Haʻikū animal sanctuary on May 11, according to a post by Sarah Haynes, operator of the Kitty Charm Farm.

She said the criminals faked an Instagram video of themselves “hunting” it, then killed and gutted it. Before long, they entered the 250-pound deceased animal into a Makawao feral pig hunting contest, winning first place and $1,000 cash prize, according to Haynes’ social media posts.

According to her posts, police are aware of what happened, have identified suspects and have a “tremendous amount of evidence.”

“They seem to be taking this case very seriously,” she said.

The Maui Police Department confirmed the case is being investigated. The Maui Humane Society reported being aware of the situation.

Haynes’ friend, Cody Stewart, said Eddie was friendly, even with strangers, and “was trained to love kids, bark like a dog and shake hands.”

Not necessarily a fan of pigs, Stewart said, “Eddie warmed my heart towards pigs. Eddie was a well-known, loved animal . . . Everyone loved him.”

Haynes recounted what happened in a Facebook post, saying that two criminals trespassed onto the sanctuary property, cut a fence to a pig pen and captured Eddie.

“It is obvious he is a cherished pet,” she said. “He has a huge bright blue walk-in barn and a swimming pool.”

Already, one of the perpetrators has confessed, she said. He admitted that “they both hog-tied him and dragged him — alive — out the hole in our fence, and down deep into the gulch. They then used Eddie to stage a fake hunting video with their dogs. They killed him, gutted him and transported him to a contest in Makawao that they had entered the night before. They hung him from a tree to weigh him and at 250 pounds, they won $1,000 for biggest pig hunted. Then at least one of them posted self-congratulatory videos and pictures of what they did to Eddie on Instagram. Videos I had to watch to identify him.”

Stewart said the thieves entry of Eddie in the pig hunting contest drew some suspicion when other participants noticed something was amiss. For example, the pig had been neutered and was much heavier than feral pigs normally entered into the contest, he said.

Also, the “pig hunter” story began to unravel when the two “contestants” were unable to carry the deceased pig, by themselves, from their truck to the weigh-in scale, he said. Yet, they claimed to have killed it and hauled it out of a deep valley on their own. Stewart estimated the thieves were from 17 to 21 years old, and are believed to have a variety of identities and practice kick boxing.

Stewart said the thieves took video of shooting the pig in the head, and apparently needed help from accomplices to lift it out of the valley where it had been slaughtered. One of the contest participants was a police officer, who could tell that the “hunters” story wasn’t adding up, he said. Nevertheless, the winning contestants split the prize money and took off.

Somehow, they were tracked down and eventually admitted in a recorded phone conversation what happened, Stewart said.

Eddie’s demise was a cruel and violent end to what began as a tormented object in pig-hunting training, Haynes said.

“We adopted him as a youngster from a local pig rescue,” she said. “It was suspected that he was used for hunting dog training as he was found running through Kīhei with scars and rope burns. We adopted him at our sanctuary so he would never have to go through something like this again. He was taught to trust humans, and turned out to be such a sweet pig — providing comfort to so many Sanctuary visitors. He was my treasured pet.”

Haynes said this is not a time for a public debate about pig hunting, although she does not support killing animals.

“It’s the other hunters who tipped me off to what happened to Eddie,” she said on Facebook. “They are appalled by this behavior, and have cooperated fully with the police. Hunters have a code of conduct. These young men broke all the rules.”

She said she hopes Eddie will rest in peace. “You brought us so much joy, and you will be forever missed. I promised to protect you forever, and I sure intended to. I’m shattered that your life ended the same terrifying way that it started.”

“I miss him terribly,” she said.

Haynes suggested members of the public honor Eddie’s memory by donating to Maui pig sanctuaries, including the Maui Pig Sanctuary, Friends Of All Beings (also known as Maui Pig Ohana) and The Leilani Farm Sanctuary.

The Maui Humane Society encourages the community to report suspected animal cruelty by calling 808-877-3680, ext. 222. Available 24/7.