Alabama teens charged with beheading puppies, posting video on Snapchat

ALABAMA -- An Alabama prosecutor says two teens face cruelty charges after they were accused of beheading three puppies with a machete and posting video on social media.

District Attorney Michael Jackson of Alabama's 4th Judicial Circuit says a caller alerted police after seeing the video Thursday on Snapchat.

Jackson said the Wilcox County Sheriff's Department on Tuesday arrested 18-year-old Ashley Johnston and a 17-year-old who was not named because of his age. It was not immediately clear if Johnston had an attorney.

UPDATE: The District Attorney's Office successfully argued that the "juvenile" should be charged as an adult. He has been identified as James Howell.

Jackson says both teens are students at the private school Wilcox Academy.

Snapchat automatically deletes postings after they are viewed. Sheriff Ernest Evans say investigators have not seen the posting, but have spoken to others who did.

Wilcox County is about 75 miles west of Montgomery.

(AL.com - March 10, 2015)