KATU News reporter Shelby Slaughter opens this story in a way that almost makes it feel normal at first: just a typical afternoon in a Vancouver-area neighborhood where rabbits hop around like they belong there – because they do.
Slaughter reports that for more than a year, people living in the area kept finding something that didn’t fit that peaceful picture: blow darts stuck in animals.
It wasn’t one strange discovery, either. Slaughter says this has been going on since November 2024, with repeated reports of injured rabbits and other small animals.
And the longer it went on, the more it stopped feeling like a random act and started feeling like someone’s pattern.
Slaughter revisited the neighborhood and got reaction from residents who clearly see these animals as part of their daily life, not disposable background scenery.
One neighbor, Ryan Scott, tells Slaughter that the rabbits are basically part of the community. He describes a place where people leave out food when it gets colder, because they feel responsible for the little “critters” around them.
That detail matters. This wasn’t a community that treated wildlife like a nuisance. This was a community that fed rabbits – and still ended up watching them get hurt.
Scott tells Slaughter he even started walking the neighborhood about once a month, looking for darts, staying alert if he heard a “ruckus,” and trying to make sure nothing was happening outside that could affect his family and neighbors.
That’s not something people do in a normal year. That’s something people do when they’re tired of feeling helpless.
The Reports Spread Beyond Vancouver
Slaughter reports that the investigation wasn’t limited to that Vancouver neighborhood.
Court documents cited in her reporting show multiple incidents at Lewisville Regional Park in the Battle Ground area, where squirrels were found with darts lodged in them.
One report Slaughter mentions is especially disturbing because it shows the animal was still alive: deputies responded to a call about a squirrel with a blow dart in its jaw, and the report said the squirrel was trying to eat.
In another incident, Slaughter says a squirrel was found with a dart in its neck at the same park.
Then, just days later, another call came in about a squirrel with a dart through its back.
If you’re reading this and thinking, “How does anyone even notice that?”—that’s part of what makes it so creepy. These aren’t always large obvious injuries. People were paying attention. They were seeing these animals up close. They were noticing the darts.
Slaughter also reports that, in one case, a woodpecker was found killed by a blow dart.
That detail widens the picture even more. This wasn’t just a rabbit issue. It wasn’t just squirrels. It was multiple types of small animals, across multiple locations.
And that’s why the story hits so hard: it wasn’t a single bad day. It was a long-running problem that kept popping back up.
Investigators Say They Identified A Suspect
According to Shelby Slaughter’s reporting, the Clark County Sheriff’s Office charged an 18-year-old from Battle Ground in connection with the case.
Slaughter names the suspect as Trevor Ek, and she reports he appeared in court earlier this week.
She says Ek is facing first-degree animal cruelty charges.
Slaughter adds an important point: investigators say the incidents weren’t just happening in one small pocket of Vancouver. The documents suggest the dart attacks stretched into parks and other areas as well.
In other words, if you lived near the neighborhood where rabbits were getting hit, you weren’t imagining it. But if you lived miles away and saw the same thing, you weren’t imagining it either.
That’s when a strange neighborhood rumor becomes a countywide public safety and cruelty case.
“Enjoys Killing Small Animals”
This is where Slaughter’s reporting turns from unsettling to genuinely sickening.
She reports that deputies say Ek admitted to shooting darts at the animals and told them he “enjoys killing small animals” and “couldn’t find any other place to shoot the squirrels,” according to court documents.
That statement is the kind of thing that makes your stomach drop, because it suggests motive isn’t anger or panic or self-defense. It suggests enjoyment.
And in cases involving animal cruelty, that detail tends to trigger a bigger conversation in the community – because people naturally start asking what else someone like that is capable of doing.
Slaughter also reports that investigators say Ek admitted to shooting animals in other locations too, but didn’t say where.
That kind of vague admission doesn’t calm anyone down. It does the opposite. It makes people wonder if there are more victims that were never found, or more areas that haven’t connected their “random” incidents to this case yet.
Slaughter notes Ek is expected back in court soon.
How Animal Control Helped Connect The Dots
Slaughter reports that a spokesperson from Clark County Animal Protection and Control didn’t go on camera, but sent a statement describing how the case developed.
In that statement, the interim manager, Donna Goddard, explains that Animal Protection and Control received a complaint in late November about squirrels being shot with darts at Lewisville Regional Park, and that it resembled the earlier case involving domestic rabbits in Vancouver.
Goddard says the lead animal control officer, Paul Batchelder, went to the park to investigate, collect evidence, and talk to witnesses.
According to the statement Slaughter shares, Batchelder found similarities between incidents and identified a potential suspect, then provided case history and evidence to law enforcement partners in the Sheriff’s Office.
Goddard also says she’s proud of the Animal Protection & Control team for working to prevent cruelty and neglect, and she notes the case is now being handled by the criminal division of the Clark County Prosecutor’s Office.
It’s worth saying plainly: this is what it looks like when a local agency refuses to shrug something off.
A lot of people assume that small-animal cruelty complaints go nowhere. Slaughter’s report shows the opposite can happen when someone treats the pattern seriously, documents it, and keeps pushing.
Why This Story Sticks With People
Shelby Slaughter’s story lands differently because it’s not just about law enforcement making an arrest. It’s about a neighborhood living with a lingering sense of menace.
The darts themselves are a weird detail – quiet, precise, easy to carry, and easy to deny if someone doesn’t get caught.
And because the animals were small, it’s possible for the cruelty to hide in plain sight. A rabbit runs off injured. A squirrel disappears into trees. A woodpecker drops somewhere you might not notice. Without neighbors paying attention, this could have continued even longer.
There’s also something especially upsetting about the target list Slaughter describes: rabbits and squirrels aren’t threats. They’re not attacking anyone. They’re just… there.
So when someone hurts them, it feels like cruelty for cruelty’s sake. And that’s why people react so strongly to cases like this.
The Community’s Role, And The Warning Sign Nobody Wants
Slaughter’s reporting includes neighbors describing these rabbits as “part of the community.” That’s more than a cute line. It explains why people got involved.
Ryan Scott didn’t just file a report and move on. He walked the neighborhood and looked for darts. He stayed watchful. That’s a person responding to something that feels wrong in a way that official systems can’t always solve quickly.
And there’s a bigger uncomfortable truth that hangs over stories like this: animal cruelty is widely seen as a warning sign of deeper issues.
That doesn’t mean every person accused of harming animals automatically escalates. But when someone is allegedly telling investigators they “enjoy” killing small animals, it triggers a serious gut-level fear in the community.
Because people aren’t only thinking about rabbits anymore. They’re thinking about their pets. Their kids at the park. Their own safety.
Slaughter doesn’t claim more than what’s reported, but the tone of the neighborhood reaction makes it obvious: people wanted this stopped, and they wanted it stopped yesterday.
What Happens Next
Shelby Slaughter reports that Ek has already appeared in court and is facing first-degree animal cruelty charges, with another court date coming up.
She also makes clear that this case is built on repeated incidents, evidence collection, and a timeline that spans more than a year.
If the allegations hold, the most important outcome isn’t just punishment. It’s prevention—stopping the behavior before there are more injured animals, and before the community is left wondering if the next call will be worse.
For neighbors who’ve spent a year finding darts and injured animals, an arrest isn’t closure. But it is the first moment in a long time that probably feels like the situation is finally moving in the right direction.
Mark grew up in the heart of Texas, where tornadoes and extreme weather were a part of life. His early experiences sparked a fascination with emergency preparedness and homesteading. A father of three, Mark is dedicated to teaching families how to be self-sufficient, with a focus on food storage, DIY projects, and energy independence. His writing empowers everyday people to take small steps toward greater self-reliance without feeling overwhelmed.
