(Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)
A Salem man is charged with killing a cat, pigeon and crow found in a business parking lot after police say he beheaded and mutilated the animals.
Micah Smith, 26, was charged Friday with first-degree aggravated animal abuse and five counts of first-degree animal abuse in Marion County Circuit Court, according to court records.
A Salem police officer responded May 12 to a call reporting a pigeon that was dismembered and disemboweled, with “redrum” graffitied near the pigeon, the Salem Police Department said in a Friday news release.
A few days later, a crow was found dead and similarly mutilated with more graffiti added,” police said in the release. Another officer on Thursday responded to the same location “when a cat was found.”
The cat was beheaded and had other injuries to its body, according to the release.
Salem police identified and arrested Smith Friday, and he was booked into Marion County Jail.
Marion County Circuit Court Judge Pro Tem Natasha Zimmerman set Smith’s bail at $250,000 Monday.
He remained in custody as of Friday afternoon, the jail’s roster showed.
-Ardeshir Tabrizian
