HOWELL, N.J. (1010 WINS) -- A New Jersey man faces five years in prison after pleading guilty to animal cruelty charges in the deaths of four puppies that were stolen from a farm, authorities said.
Daniel McDonald, 26, pleaded guilty Thursday to four counts of third-degree animal cruelty in Monmouth County Superior Court. He will be sentenced on Jan. 8.
Prosecutors said four German Shepherd puppies were found dead on May 18 at a property in Howell where McDonald had been temporarily staying. The bodies of two of the puppies were uncovered in a fire pit, while the other two were discovered buried on the property, according to prosecutors.
An investigation by Howell Township Police and the Monmouth County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals found that the puppies had been stolen from a farm in Somerset County on or around May 12, when they were just three weeks old.
"Investigators learned McDonald was staying at the Somerset County farm prior to the time the puppies went missing," prosecutors said in a release. "Investigators also learned the puppies were ill, in distress and were struggling to breathe prior to their deaths."
Prosecutors said a necropsy performed on the two buried puppies revealed the animals suffered from parasites and were also severely emaciated and malnourished with "no indications of recent nutritional ingestion."
During his plea, McDonald "took full responsibility for not getting the puppies the proper care resulting in their deaths," prosecutors said.
McDonald also pleaded guilty to a charge of third-degree receiving stolen property after admitting he was in possession of a John Deere front-end loader reported stolen in Monroe, according to prosecutors.
