The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a man for beating a dog to death and burglarizing two local businesses where the crime occurred.
On Sunday morning, the owner arrived at John’s Automotive on Snug Harbor Place in Sarasota and called the sheriff’s office to report the four-year-old Mastiff named “Ashton” was missing. Later that day he reviewed video surveillance and saw horrific images of a man beating his dog to death. When deputies returned, the man identified the suspect at Kevin Koscielniak, DOB 3/10/61 (no permanent address), an employee who was asked to leave Saturday after causing a disturbance.
The investigation determined that Koscielniak climbed over a barbed wire fence, killed the dog with a tire iron, wrapped the dog in a blanket, cut the fence to Casey’s Auto, an adjacent business, dragged the dog onto that property and buried it there.
Koscielniak was located by the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office and arrested. He is charged with one count of Cruelty to Animals Resulting in Death, one count of Improper Disposal of Dead Animals, two counts of Burglary, one count of Tampering with Evidence and one count for damaging the fence. He is being held on $7,620 bond.