PARSONS, Kan. — A 3-month-old German shepherd puppy belonging to a Kansas police officer was shot and beheaded in a vile attack. According to investigators, the GSD was targeted because of the owner’s career in law enforcement.
The off-duty officer with the Parsons Police Department reported on Dec. 3 that her puppy, named Ranger, had been brutally killed, authorities said this week, Fox News reported.
According to authorities, the pup was lured from its backyard about 7 a.m. and later found at 2 p.m. lying dead in the yard with its head severed.
“It appears that Ranger was removed from the backyard by the suspects and taken to another location where he was probably shot in the head,” a police statement said. “It’s head was then sliced off.”
The dog’s decapitated body and head were returned to its owner’s home, police said. Investigators believe the pup was specifically targeted since it belonged to a police officer.
“If someone is willing to mutilate an innocent puppy due to the very nature of the owner’s career, then it is possible that the suspect is willing to go even farther and attack innocent children or family members to make a statement,” according to law enforcement authorities.
Parsons Police Chief Robert Spinks added his personal comments to the vicious crime.
“I cannot even describe my feelings of disdain for the person(s) responsible. I am an avid dog lover as I have made it clear to the community over the years that I have been here. I have 2 rescue dogs, one that I adopted from our local shelter,” Spinks said in a statement. “The level of cowardice that would lead someone to kill a little puppy named ‘Ranger’ is astonishing.”
Deputy Chief Dennis Dodd of the Parsons Police Department said the suspect knew that Ranger belonged to a police officer, according to Fox News.
“Our officers are attacked, hit, kicked, bit, scratched, called every name in the book and even spit on, as a part of our job, but this kind of senseless attack on a puppy at the home of an officer can’t be tolerated,” he said.
At the present time, there is a $4,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction of the perpetrator. The donations have flowed in from local residents who are equally appalled.
