OAN Staff James Meyers
2:41 PM – Tuesday, April 22, 2025
A new report has revealed it took at least 12 New York animal cops in a four-hour “squirrel raid” to find and seize a pet squirrel and raccoon from an amateur sanctuary. The case drew national scrutiny from Vice President JD Vance and tech giant Elon Musk.
New law enforcement documents shared with Judicial Watch provided the first details about the October raid and included notes that the officials planned to euthanize the wildlife to test for rabies, even before one of the officers said “Peanut,” the squirrel bit her.
“New York State bureaucrats did not want to turn over these documents, but Judicial Watch’s lawsuit forced their hand,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “The documents show an abuse of power where 12 officers were sent in on a raid to seize Peanut and Fred, who the bureaucrats decided beforehand would be killed. These documents show the killing of Peanut the Squirrel and Fred the Racoon was the result of pure government abuse and insanity,” he added.
Named a “squirrel raid” by the Washington-based legal watchdog, the package of 163 pages secured under a Freedom of Information Law lawsuit described an operation of overwhelming force to find Instagram star Peanut the squirrel and “Fred” the raccoon after officials received a few anonymous complaints.
Mark Longo, the owner of the social media sensation squirrel is seeking legal action against those involved after the October 30th seizure of the squirrel from Longo’s home in Pine City.
The suit also said that the state planned to test for rabies in the animals before the raid occurred because raccoons are “a rabies of vector species.” That required that the animals first be killed, then their heads decapitated. No rabies were found in the tests of the two “pets.”
Longo had Peanut for seven years and was featured in several social media posts used to raise money for his “sanctuary.” However, a handful of people complained, and the state intervened.
At the time of the raid by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Longo said he was unlicensed to possess wildlife, but claimed that he was applying for a sanctuary license. He also denied at the time that he had the animals in his home.
Longo pleaded to keep them after Peanut was found in a bathtub and Fred in a suitcase.
Reports indicated that one of the officers who seized Peanut said she was bitten on one of her fingers, but the bite didn’t break through her latex glove.
Previously, New York officials have said that they blew the raid at Longo’s home in Pine City, New York, and said they planned to “do better” in the future.
Judicial Watch, who released the documents pertaining to the raid, were the first to provide information on the size of the operation. The officer who organized the raid stated at least 12 law enforcement officials were involved. “3 DEC [Department of Environmental Conservation] investigators, 1 investigator lieutenant, 4 uniform ECOs [Environmental Control Officers], 1 uniform lieutenant, and 3 Bureau of Wildlife staff.”
The case has also caused consideration of new legislation introduced as “Peanut’s Law” which would “require a 72-hour waiting period before animals from animal sanctuaries are euthanized, possibly long enough to observe symptoms of rabies.”
Vance also showed worry during an election rally in 2024, and Musk characterized the raid as “government overreach.”
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