Erica Michelle Evans, 35, is being held in Maricopa County, Arizona, while she awaits extradition to Southwest Florida on two Collier County felony charges of aggravated animal cruelty. Authorities allege that Evans left her two bulldogs confined in an empty Naples apartment after poisoning them with antifreeze.
According to the Tampa Free Press, Collier County deputies responded to an apartment complex at Addison Place off Immokalee Road in October 2024 after the unit had reportedly sat empty for roughly a month. Inside, deputies found the electricity shut off and rooms swarming with flies and other insects. In a locked kennel, they discovered the bodies of two bulldogs: Zora, a 13-year-old female American bulldog, and Bronson, a 9-year-old male English bulldog. Addison Place is a 296-unit luxury apartment complex that opened its first buildings in 2019 near Collier Boulevard, according to the Business Observer.
Necropsies Point to Antifreeze Poisoning
Medical examiners concluded the dogs died from ethylene glycol poisoning, the toxic compound found in standard automotive antifreeze, per the same account from the Tampa Free Press. Zora and Bronson were sent to the University of Florida Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory in Gainesville for formal necropsies, according to the WAUC 102.1.
Ethylene glycol carries a naturally sweet odor and taste that draws animals to it, and the substance is metabolized in the liver into toxic organic acids that form crystals capable of causing severe metabolic acidosis and irreversible kidney failure within 18 to 36 hours of ingestion, according to the Merck Veterinary Manual. The American College of Veterinary Pharmacists identifies a potentially fatal dose of roughly 2 to 3 milliliters per pound, per the American College of Veterinary Pharmacists. Major antifreeze manufacturers have added a bittering agent since 2012 to deter pets and children from drinking it, though the Merck manual notes some animals still consume the fluid despite the added bitterness.
Why suspected exposure requires urgent care
According to the Merck Veterinary Manual, ethylene glycol poisoning can initially cause vomiting, excessive thirst, increased urination and neurologic problems in dogs, while severe kidney failure usually develops within 36 to 72 hours. That progression makes suspected ingestion a veterinary emergency: owners should seek immediate care rather than wait for severe symptoms to appear.
Detectives Say Poisoning Was Deliberate
Investigators with the Collier County Animal Cruelty Investigations Alliance allege that Evans confined the dogs together, gave them antifreeze and then left the apartment, according to the Tampa Free Press. She later moved to Phoenix to live with family members. Court records show she remains detained in Maricopa County pending transfer to Collier County. The allegations have not been adjudicated.
Sheriff Kevin Rambosk said authorities will not tolerate people who intentionally harm animals, calling the case particularly heinous because of the deliberate nature of the crime and the suffering the dogs endured. He said Animal Cruelty Investigations Alliance detectives worked diligently to uncover what happened to Zora and Bronson and hold the person responsible accountable. The Collier County Sheriff's Office has an Animal Cruelty Investigations Alliance, according to the Collier County Sheriff's Office.
Extradition and Felony Exposure Ahead
Evans is awaiting transfer from Arizona to Florida.
If convicted in Collier County, Evans faces consequences under Florida's animal-cruelty laws, as described by Online Sunshine. The article also discusses Florida's animal-cruelty laws, citing StateScoop.
Collier County also maintains its own searchable local Animal Abuse Registry, letting residents, shelters, and adoption agencies check public records of individuals tied to animal cruelty offenses in the county. The case follows other recent South Florida felony animal-cruelty filings.
