FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — A North Texas man who prosecutors say brutally beat his 11-week-old German Shepherd puppy has been sentenced to five years in prison.
Deric Berquist was sentenced on Friday after being convicted of animal cruelty.
Prosecutors with the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office say Berquist was captured savagely beating, punching, choking and slamming the puppy’s small body to the ground in multiple videos which had been captured on his own home security system.
Prosecutor David Alex called Berquist “a different kind of evil.”
The maximum punishment for the charge is two years in state jail but prosecutors say it was enhanced against Berquist due to the level of torture involved.
Authorities say the puppy, named Nikki, suffered broken bones but survived. She is now living in a new home.