ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, Ind. -- The St. Joseph County Police Department reports their Warrants Unit conducted a search on Thursday afternoon in the 2600 block of W. Washington Street in South Bend for 23-year-old Ted Ballin.

Ballin was wanted on a Felony Bench Warrant for Robbery and Animal Cruelty after allegedly throwing a cat off the Mishawaka Avenue Bridge into the St. Joseph River.

The report states after searching the residence, officers found Ballin hiding in the attic.

He was subsequently taken into custody without incident.

Twenty-three-year-old Lily Browning was also arrested and preliminarily charged with Felony Assisting a Criminal and Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor.

Both were taken to the St. Joseph County Jail.

In official court documents obtained by ABC57, it's stated Ballin's Robbery charge stems from an Aug. 1, 2022, incident, while his Animal Cruelty charge stems from an Aug. 8, 2024, incident.

The first probable cause affidavit states on Aug. 1, 2022, officers with the South Bend Police Department responded to an area in the 400 block of S. Warren Street for a possible robbery.

Authorities say they met with the victim, who stated she took her scooter for a ride when a man approached her and tried to take her scooter.

A struggle then occurred between the man and the victim, at which point a neighbor tried to intervene, causing the man to flee.

A wallet was dropped by the man, which belonged to Ballin.

The victim then confirmed Ballin was the man who tried to take her scooter.

Neighbors confirmed to the police they saw the events the victim reported.

The second probable cause affidavit states Mishawaka police responded to the area of E. Mishawaka Avenue on Aug. 8, 2024, regarding a man throwing a cat off the Michigan Avenue Bridge into the St. Joseph River.

Upon arrival, police spoke with three witnesses.

The first witness told police he was walking with Ballin as he was pushing his son in a stroller when Ballin picked up an orange cat on Edgewater Drive.

The report states Ballin then took an Apple Air Tag off the cat's collar with the first witness picking the tag up. The first witness told police he kept telling Ballin to put the cat down as they walked.

The witness told authorities once they were on the bridge Ballin acted as if he was going to throw the cat in the river then didn’t.

The witness continued, saying he told Ballin to put the cat down at which point he threw it in the river.

The second witness reported an unknown man had made a throwing/rocking gesture with an orange cat in his arms, towards the railing of the bridge.

This witness told police man then leaned over the side of the bridge, holding the cat over the edge, before coming back up without the cat in his arms.

The second witness then confronted man and asked if he had thrown the cat. Ballin is said to have run away from the witness at that time.

The second witness was later interviewed by the detectives and was unable to pick Ballin out of a photo array, but narrowed it down to two photos, including Ballin’s.

The third witness did not witness the incident itself but, documents state they were able to take a photo of the man prior to him fleeing the scene.

The third witness then contacted the cat’s owner using information on the cat’s collar.

Later, this witness's photo was used on an MPD Facebook post attempting to identify the suspect.