Dracut man charged with animal cruelty in death of roommate's dog

A 36-year-old Dracut man has been charged with animal cruelty in connection with the death of his roommate's dog last year.

Anthony Segnini was arraigned last week in Middlesex Superior Court, where he pleaded not guilty to animal cruelty charges.

The charges stemmed from an alleged incident on December 11, 2023. Dracut police said officers responded to a home on Sunset Road following a report of possible animal cruelty after she returned home from work and found her dog, Seamus, an 8-year-old, lying in Yorkshire, according to court documents Terrier dead in his playpen. The 8-pound dog was covered in a blanket, blood and feces. The woman is said to have found blood, urine and feces on the carpet and walls of the living room.

Prosecutors said the woman took the dog to Wignall Animal Hospital, where it was pronounced dead. An autopsy later revealed that the dog died of severe blunt trauma from a blow to the head and also suffered broken bones, a collapsed lung and other injuries as a result of intentional and repeated blows, according to court documents.

According to prosecutors, Segnini allegedly told the woman – his roommate – that Seamus was unresponsive when he woke up for work and that he tried to revive the animal before covering it with a blanket and leaving. He is said to have made a similar statement to investigators.

Segnini was later arrested. He was indicted by a Middlesex County grand jury in September.

After his release following his Oct. 24 arraignment, he was ordered to have no direct or indirect contact with his former roommate, no unsupervised contact with the animal in his home and no possession of animals.

He will return to court on November 21. A lawyer for Segnini did not immediately respond to a request for comment.