Roxbury man allegedly hits dog over the head with baseball bat, faces animal cruelty charge
The dog fled after the alleged incident, and police and the owner couldn't find it.
A Roxbury man is facing an animal cruelty charge after he allegedly hit his roommate’s dog over the head with a baseball bat.William Mitchell Jr., 42, was arrested following the incident on Monday night. He’s expected to be arraigned in Roxbury District Court, according to Boston police.Police say they responded to 165 Hillside St. around 9:08 p.m. Monday. Witnesses told police they saw the dog attempt to nip the suspect, but it didn’t bite him. Mitchell then allegedly went into the attic and reappeared with a baseball bat. He then allegedly struck the dog over the head as it was laying down.“The witnesses stated the dog let out a loud yelp before fleeing the residence frantically,” police said in a news release.A conversation with the suspect verified what the witnesses said, but Mitchell said he hit the dog in the back, not on the head. He said he’d had problems with the dog in the past, according to police.The owner returned while police were still on scene, telling authorities he had been out searching for the dog. Police then helped search, but they couldn’t find it. A police spokesperson had not heard as of Tuesday afternoon whether the dog had returned.
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