Deputy Who Police Say Tortured And Killed Adopted Service Dog Arrested
April 29 2022, Published 10:21 a.m. ET
A Michigan sheriff's deputy who police say tortured and killed his service dog after it "nipped" at him was fired and charged with a felony, according to a report.
The New York Post reports that Jacob Wilkinson was arrested Monday and fired from the Genesee County Sheriff's Office after he fatally shot his adopted service dog, Habs, and dumped it in a ditch.
The dog was found bound and shot three times, according to police.
“There was a time somewhere between September, October-ish where he was trimming the dog’s nails and the dog nipped at him,” Sheriff Christopher Swanson said in a Facebook video Wednesday where he shared Wilkinson’s mugshot.
“And that guy … thought he had enough control over the dog that you’re not gonna do that, so he duct-taped the rear legs of the dog, duct-taped the front legs of the dog, duct-taped the muzzle.”
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The dog wasn't found until March 24, because snow-covered the pit bull mix's body for much of the winter in Saginaw County, according to MILive.com. When animal control officials performed a necropsy, an autopsy performed on an animal, they were able to link the dog to Wilkinson.
Wilkinson worked as a correction officer for the Michigan Department of Corrections before being hired by the sheriff's office on Jan. 11. He lasted 42 days before his arrest.
Habs was a member of the Blue Star Service Dog program, which is where inmates help train canines as part of a therapy program. Wilkinson had helped train Habs and adopted it last year.
“Some people talk about the blue line there ain’t no blue line when it comes to right and wrong,” Swanson said.
