A MAN caught on camera squeezing the throat of a pet dog with both hands as he lay on top of her has pleaded guilty to animal torture.
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The mistreatment was the final act in repeated cruelty by Jacob Edward Menz that could have gone on for more than two months before being uncovered, according to police facts tendered to Wagga Local Court on Wednesday.
Menz, 27, pleaded guilty to two offences: torture, beat and cause prolonged suffering to an animal; and commit an act of aggravated cruelty upon an animal.
Magistrate Erin Kennedy sent Menz away for a pre-sentence report to help her frame an appropriate punishment in June.
“This is a very serious matter,” Ms Kennedy told Menz.
“I am aware of that your honour,” Menz replied.
Menz mistreated a dog called Tess, the placid seven-year-old Staffy cross of a flatmate who moved into Menz’s central Wagga house last December.
Soon after the flatmate moved in, she noticed Tess was suffering unusual and unexplained injuries, such as scabs on her legs and face.
Tess changed from being a happy and confident dog to one that was withdrawn and nervous, particularly around Menz.
One day, Tess’s owner noticed that one her pet’s claws had been ripped out.
In February, Tess screamed in pain and a vet found she had lameness consistent with elbow displacement.
A neighbour rang Tess’s owner one day to say she had heard Tess screaming out in pain, and looking over the fence the neighbour saw Menz walking back into the house and Tess in her kennel.
Tess’s owner decided to buy a surveillance camera, which she hid in an Easter egg box in her bedroom where she was allowing Tess to stay while she was at work.
On April 7, the camera caught Menz going into the bedroom and closing the door behind him.
He rolled Tess on her back, pressed firmly on her stomach several times and then placed his hands around her throat and squeezed firmly.
“While squeezing Tess’s neck and throat region, the accused presses her head firmly into the bed and moves to position himself on top of her,” the facts said.
“The accused sits with his full body weight on Tess’s head and chest area while squeezing her throat and pressing her head into the bed for a period of time.
“The accused watches her as he is doing it.
“Tess is completely submissive throughout the incident and does not make any attempt to fight back or bite the accused.
“The accused gets off Tess and exits the room for a short period of time before walking back in and closing the door behind him again.
“The accused approaches the bed and Tess moves out of his reach.
“The accused can be seen attempting to get Tess to come to him, he remains in the room for a period of time staring at Tess before exiting and closing the door behind him.”
After his arrest on April 8 Menz declined to be interviewed by police.
Police prosecutor, Sergeant Priscilla Jones, told Ms Kennedy on Wednesday the maximum penalty for the torture charge was five years in prison, while the maximum punishment for aggravated cruelty was two years in prison.
Ms Kennedy asked Menz if he had read the police facts.
“Vaguely,” he replied.
“Do you agree with them?” Ms Kennedy asked.
“Yeah,” Menz said.
Menz, who represented himself in court, told Ms Kennedy he would consult a lawyer before his next court appearance.
The police facts described Tess’s nature before being tortured as placid and friendly towards people and no history of aggression.