New Mexico woman accused in 5 dog deaths arrested in Arizona

Police in Albuquerque say a woman accused of abandoning five dogs to die in a sweltering car last week has been arrested in Arizona.

They say 31-year-old Sara Mauter is awaiting extradition to New Mexico.

The Albuquerque Journal says a warrant of extradition was signed Sunday in Maricopa County, which is Arizona’s most populous county.

The Journal reports that Mauter is suspected of leaving five dogs in a locked and unventilated rented SUV behind a nursery and garden center in northeast Albuquerque last Wednesday.

Police say Mauter was hired to transport the dogs to Texas by the animals’ owner.

It’s not immediately clear how Mauter was apprehended in Arizona.