Kevin Koscielniak, 52, pleaded no contest to the charges including animal cruelty and armed burglary in Sarasota court Wednesday, the local Herald-Tribune newspaper reported.
The walls and ceiling of John's Automotive on Snug Harbor Place were spattered with blood after Koscielniak broke into the shop on April 27 and bludgeoned owner John Olaya's mastiff, Ashton, to death.
The brute sold scrap metal he collected at the shop, but had been kicked off the property earlier in the day for showing up drunk, the newspaper reported.
Security footage showed him climbing a barbed wire fence and breaking into the shop after it had closed for the day.
According to WFLA.com, Olaya saw footage of Koscielniak beating his dog to death.
The 4-year-old pup's battered remains were later found buried on an adjacent property. A bloody blanket was discovered in Koscielniak's truck.
"This was a senseless act of violence indicative of a depraved mind," state prosecutor Art Jackman said.
Koscielniak is a career thug with a long rap sheet, including busts for burglary and battery, according to the Herald-Tribune.
(NY Daily News - June 27, 2013)
NOTE: Iowa, take notice. Beating an animal to death is animal cruelty! ("Appeals Court: Beating a puppy to death with baseball bat is not torture")
Earlier:
