Ava, MO. – An Ava man has been charged for killing his neighbor’s pets, sexual misconduct, and other crimes.
James Lee Aborn, age 72, is charged with felony unlawful use of a weapon – subsection 9, three counts of felony 1st-degree harassment, and misdemeanors animal abuse and 1st-degree sexual misconduct for incidents said to have occurred during the month of January.
According to the probable cause statement, Aborn is accused of shooting and killing his neighbor’s dog and multiple cats. Police noted the remains of the dog had an apparent gunshot wound but were unable to find cat remains. The neighbor who had called police about her dog noted hearing a gunshot prior to finding her dog dead on Jan. 22, 2024. The woman had complained to Ava Police on Jan. 11, 2024, accusing Aborn of killing her cats.
Ava Police were able to find a blood trail from where the dog lay dead leading towards Aborn’s residence. In interviews with Aborn, he denied shooting the dog but said he had been shooting at a tree stump in his yard from his house and then saw the dog limping walking near the stump. He also denied shooting the cats but shooting at the cats to “keep them scared off.” Aborn also noted he did not have any pets.
The neighbor had videos they had recorded of Aborn, where he is heard saying “here kitty, kitty, kitty” multiple times and other videos where Aborn is yelling at the neighbors while urinating from his porch, saying obsene things toward and about the woman.
Aborn does have a violent history, with a harrassment arrest in 2013 and previously being arrested for killing his brother in 2017. He was found not guilty of breaking the law for killing his brother due to the Castle doctrine in Missouri.
