A man has been arrested on aggravated animal cruelty charges after an online video allegedly showing him killing a wild opossum circulated on social media.
Brandon Terry Honea, 34, is a taxidermist and TikTok livestreamer from Tennessee. On Wednesday, November 11, he was arrested and charged with aggravated animal cruelty.
The incident leading to his arrest was first reported to authorities on November 9, with the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office confirming it had received multiple calls concerning alleged animal abuse captured on video.
Honea claimed an opossum killed his chickens
According to TMZ, Honea, who was reportedly livestreaming, could be seen on video grabbing an opossum by its tail and repeatedly slamming it against a porch, while a woman could be heard pleading with him to stop.
Both the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office and the Fayetteville Police Department received calls about the killing, before referring it to the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA). The agency was called in because opossums are classified as Class 2 wildlife in the state.
Honea allegedly claimed that the animal had been killing his chickens, and that the TWRA had told him he had done nothing wrong.
However, the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office ultimately confirmed that its deputies had identified the individual involved and made the arrest following their own investigation.
Investigator Cheyenne Gonzalez told TMZ that the Sheriff’s Office couldn’t comment on the TWRA’s alleged comments to Honea, emphasizing that deputies independently investigated and brought the charges themselves.
The TWRA’s communications manager, Jason Harmon, told Voice For Us that the agency was reviewing the case and would coordinate with the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office and the District Attorney General.
The Sheriff’s Office has not released further details about the case, while the TWRA has declined to comment further due to the ongoing investigation.
