A Long Island man was sentenced to prison and barred from ever owning a pet after he admitted to beating his aunt’s chihuahua to death, prosecutors said Monday.
Peter Minichello, 22, confessed to attacking the 5-year-old dog — named Pup-Pup — on July 6, 2022, causing grisly injuries that left the tiny animal dead days later, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office.
Minichello had been left alone with a perfectly healthy Pup-Pup at his West Islip home while his mother and aunt were at work that day, prosecutors said.
But when Minichello’s aunt came home, the small dog was sprawled motionless in his crate, bloodied and covered in bruises.
Pup-Pup was rushed to a veterinarian, where it was determined he’d suffered broken ribs, blunt force trauma to the head and torso, and had sustained a penetrating wound on an elbow.
He died of a traumatic brain injury days later.
It’s unclear why Minichello attacked the helpless pooch.
Minichello confessed to the brutal attack in June, pleading guilty to a felony count of aggravated cruelty to animals and criminal mischief, also a felony.
He was sentenced Monday to four months in prison, and the a lifelong ban on animal ownership.
“What this defendant put an innocent animal through is as shocking as it is deplorable,” District Attorney Raymond Tierney said in a statement.
“A dog’s love is unconditional, and my heart goes out to the defendant’s aunt who lost a beloved companion.”
