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Facebook/PSNICraigavon
The remains of young 'Sparky' were found by police.
# Sparky
Police call for restraint after a young puppy was killed with a hammer in Armagh
The PSNI has urged people to allow them investigate the matter.
POLICE IN ARMAGH are investigating the killing of a young dog after reports that the pup was killed with a hammer and videos of the incident were posted on Snapchat.
The incident is being investigated as a case of animal cruelty and two males were arrested “on suspicion of causing unnecessary suffering to an animal”.
The incident is believed to have happened on Saturday in Lurgan with police saying that “little Sparky suffered a horrendous death”.
Two suspects were arrested in connection with the incident, a 23-year-old man has been charged and a 16-year-old teenager has been released on bail.
The remains of the young dog and hammer were also recovered by police.
Police have also urged members of the public not to be taking matters into their own hands and making accusations against individuals.
“There are people who appear to be running their own investigations and accusing people without being in possession of the full facts,” the PSNI’s Craigavon branch said on Facebook.
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In a follow message, officers said that they were seeking any videos of the alleged incident or screenshots of videos, but stressed that they were not seeking screenshots of conversations or allegations.
“That will be the difference between an evidential case and pure hearsay. Currently, what we have is a lot of ‘he said, she said’ “, police said.
Whatever happened, it is obvious that little Sparky suffered a horrendous death. We want to get to the bottom of that and make sure that whoever is responsible is held to account. We have two in custody, but need the evidence to be able to take that further.
Anyone with information is being asked to contact PSNI officers in Lurgan or the independent charity Crimestoppers.
Read: ‘Absolutely horrendous’: 16 abandoned, malnourished donkeys rescued in Mayo >
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