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Article Archive > SPCA chief to get national award SPCA chief to get national award Victor "Buddy" Amato, chief of the Monmouth County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, will be honored for his work with several high-profile cases in recent months, including seeking and securing a lengthy prison sentence for an Aberdeen man who tortured and killed 19 cats. "We've seen Buddy's work and how aggressively he pursues animal abuse, and we believe he serves as a role model nationwide for law enforcement," said Ann Chynoweth, director of the animal cruelty and fighting campaign for the Humane Society of the United States. Chynoweth said the Monmouth County SPCA's investigation of Anthony Appolonia in 2008, which uncovered the 50-year-old's pattern of adopting felines for the express purpose of killing them, is one of several cases that brought Amato to the attention of the national group. She also mentioned as important the case of a Hazlet animal-control company being charged with cruelty after a wild squirrel died in a roof-top trap and the case of a Neptune man who was ordered to perform community service after Amato charged him for stepping on his girlfriend's pet rat. Amato, 55, of Hazlet credited his all-volunteer staff at the Monmouth County SPCA for being able to secure convictions in the cases. "It's the highest honor you can get for what I do. I feel great about it," he said. Amato began his career in law enforcement more than two decades ago as a special officer with the Middletown police department. He then served as a Department of Defense officer stationed at both Naval Air Station Lakehurst and Fort Monmouth before being hired by the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office. He has worked with the SPCA since 2004. The society also will honor New Mexico's attorney general for assembling a task force to combat illegal animal fighting, a Nebraska county sheriff who investigated a case of cruelty against 200 wild mustangs, a district attorney in Alabama that busted dog and cock fighting rings, and Indiana's attorney general who used a tax law to close a local puppy mill. Any questions, Buddy can be reached at 732-312-7153 . |