A Fayetteville man is accused of using a dumbbell to kill a dog before leaving the animal in a dumpster last week in Lowell.
Charles James Dugan, 20, faces a charge of aggravated cruelty to animals after Lowell police said they received information at 6:25 a.m. Wednesday from a woman who reported hearing of the dog's death.
After arriving in the 400 block of McClure Avenue in Lowell, authorities located a pillow and a piece of carpet, both covered in a large amount of blood and fluids, atop a dumpster, according to an affidavit.
Within about five minutes of searching through the dumpster, police found a dog wrapped in a bloodied orange sheet and white button-up shirt.
The dog had a black collar around its neck, but no tag or sign of identification.
A witness told police that Dugan had spoken of the need to "put Hugo down," adding that Dugan had the dog for about nine months after its previous owner's death.
During a search Wednesday at a home in the 400 block of McClure Avenue, police found a 30-pound dumbbell, and blood spatters on the ceiling and walls in a bedroom. A section of carpet also was missing at the residence, authorities said.
Dugan was arrested Wednesday at an apartment in Fayetteville and taken to the Benton County jail. He has a hearing set for July 11 in Benton County Circuit Court.
State Desk on 06/05/2016