Marlborough man charged with hurting dog

MASSACHUSETTS -- A Marlborough man was charged with animal cruelty and making threats after police said he was seen abusing his small dog and then angrily confronted to two passersby when they questioned whether he was hurting the animal.

Michel P. Monteiro, 46, of 13 Cross St., was charged with cruelty to animals and threatening to commit a crime after his arrest at 9:47 p.m. Friday, police said.

According to a police report filed in Marlborough District Court, two men called police and said that they were passing Monteiro in his driveway, when they heard his dog yelp. They stopped and asked Monteiro if he had hurt the dog, according to the report.

Monteiro, in turn, told the two men to "get away from my dog" and began walking toward them in a threatening manner, according to the report. One of the men continued backing up until he was pinned against a car and told police that he thought Monteiro was going to hit him.

When police arrived, they found Monteiro, still in his driveway, showing signs of intoxication and smelling like alcohol, according to the report. He was holding his dog, named Ukie, on a leash, but the dog was constantly moving in circles, rubbing the left side of his body against the ground, according to the report.

Witnesses told police that they had seen Monteiro grab Ukie by the throat after it had gotten loose from him. Witnesses said he then picked the dog up by the throat and hit it in the head with a water bottle, according to the police report.

The dog’s left eye was bright red and bloodshot and appeared as though the dog had been struck or punched, police wrote in the report. Monteiro told police that he had just noticed the color of the dog’s eye, but was not going to seek treatment for the dog.

Police requested animal control and continued speaking with Monteiro as they waited for the animal control officer to arrive. Monteiro repeatedly told police that the dog was his and that he loved the dog and did not hit it, according to the police report.

While police were talking to Monteiro, he kept picking the dog up and putting it down, at one point dropping the dog from his arms, according to the police report. After Monteiro dropped the dog, officers took control of the animal, according to the report.

An animal control officer took the animal to Tufts University Foster Hospital for Small Animals, according to the police report. A veterinarian at the hospital told police that the dog was treated for head trauma, which caused bruising to the head and left eye, according to the police report. The vet also told police that Ukie's behavior of circling and rubbing his head on the ground was consistent with being injured, police said.

Monteiro was released without bail following his arraignment in Marlborough District Court Monday and was ordered not to own any domestic animals, according to court records.

(Wicked Local Marlborough - June 23, 2014)