Deputies: Ga. man stabbed, unleashed dogs on pig

[April 06, 2013]  SPRINGFIELD, Ga. (AP) -- A Georgia man unleashed his two pit bulls on a neighbor's pet pig that got loose in a mobile home park, then stabbed the animal 23 times in front of children and other onlookers, authorities said.

The pig -- named Oliver -- survived and was in critical condition at a veterinarian's office Friday, said Effingham County Sheriff's Office spokesman David Ehsanipoor. He added that Oliver had been stabbed mostly in his neck and hind parts.

The owner of the dogs, 23-year-old Benjamin Fullwood, was charged Wednesday with felony cruelty to animals, criminal trespass and obstruction of a law enforcement officer, Ehsanipoor said. The man's bond was set at $25,000, and a judge ordered him to have no contact with domestic animals, Ehsanipoor said. It was unclear Friday if Fullwood had an attorney.

Oliver got out of its owners' yard Wednesday afternoon and wandered into a mobile home park in Springfield, Ehsanipoor said. Residents of the park were trying to get in touch with the animal's owner, when Fullwood unleashed his two pit bulls on the pig and then began stabbing him in front of a group of people, including children, Ehsanipoor said.

"This was an unprovoked attack. The pig was posing no threat to anybody," Ehsanipoor said. "It was just brutal."

Fullwood initially lied to deputies, saying he was punching the pig, Ehsanipoor said. But witness accounts, as well as the nature of the pig's wounds, led deputies to determine the pig had been stabbed, he said. Oliver was expected to make a full recovery.

Fullwood was also arrested in 2011 on animal cruelty charges for allegedly leaving cats and dogs in unsanitary cages for days without food or water, Ehsanipoor said.

[Associated Press]

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