A Massachusetts man has allegedly murdered his dog by stabbing, following a failed poisoning attempt with fentanyl. Jonathan Paluzzi, a 44-year-old from Kingston, is now facing charges on multiple accounts related to animal cruelty and possession of a Class A drug, the local police confirmed.
Failed poisoning attempt leads to dog’s fatal stabbing
The alleged dog stabbing incident was investigated by Kingston law enforcement following a 911 call.
The caller explained that they heard a series of disturbing sounds from a specific apartment. These included what sounded like scuffling, crying, angry shouts, the whines of a dog, and a loud statement along the lines of, “Don’t touch me!.” As per the 911 informant, absolute silence followed these sounds.
Upon arrival at the scene, the responding officers discovered the gruesome aftermath of this violent event. The source of the noises was a lifeless, 60-pound Bull-Terrier mix, Brutus, stabbed repeatedly inside the apartment. Additionally, the scene had fresh blood and a pair of bent grill prongs, likely the murder weapon employed by Paluzzi in the savage act.
Owner charged with animal cruelty and possession of Class A drug
Authorities seized a cigarette packet containing an off-white powdery substance from Paluzzi — suspected to be fentanyl — as well as detected a blood-stained area on his fingernail.
According to police, Paluzzi procured fentanyl the night before and tried to poison Brutus with it in the afternoon. When this attempt failed, he allegedly stabbed Brutus and fled the scene. However, the police arrested him as soon as he returned to the crime scene (via CBS News).
“The hideous nature of this case has the undivided attention of the assigned investigators,” read a statement from the Kingston Police Department, adding that they would cooperate with the Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office for a successful prosecution.
