Man cut dog open to retrieve swallowed bag of heroin

A Gloucester, Massachusetts, man has been charged with animal cruelty after his dog was found dead, sliced open, and dumped over an embankment on Tuesday. John "Jack" Dugan, 26, was arrested on Wednesday afternoon with his bail posted at $25,000. Police said the female pit bull's body was found by another dog owner walking her dog in the area.

The 1½ year-old dog named Xena was completely disemboweled and police discovered her entrails enclosed in a plastic bag that officers retrieved from a nearby dumpster. The dog had apparently swallowed unpackaged heroin that Dugan said he had left on a counter in his home, including a sealed bag of the narcotic, police said.



Police think Dugan cut the dog open to retrieve the sealed bag of heroin. According to police, Dugan admitted to snorting heroin in his apartment on Monday and then leaving it on a counter. He told police he went out and that when he returned, Xena started acting funny, collapsed on the floor and died.

He allegedly told police Xena's belly started filling up with gases and that he needed to "gut" it so that he could fit her into a black duffel bag. Security camera footage later confirmed two males, one of which had a duffel bag and was later identified as Dugan, walking along Sadler Street around 12:50am on Tuesday. Dugan also owns another pit bull, which has been turned over to the city's animal control officer.

With video of court appearance.