FREMONT, Ohio — It all started on a dusty bike trail when a group of runners spotted blood dotting the rocks near the river.
Following the trail, they found a 2-year-old female pitbull lying at the bottom of the creek with no collar, no microchip, bludgeoned to death with a stone.
"If it is an act of cruelty, then animals are the first step and it escalates," said Kelly Pocock, the Sandusky County dog warden.
Pocock guided WTOL 11 through the scene when we first reported it in July, and in the months following our first meeting, she sent the dog's body to a necropsy lab in Columbus. Meanwhile, back in Fremont, she continued to follow leads.
"Some were completely unrelated, some were pointing to this one individual," said Pocock.
One name kept coming up: LeShawn Gilleland. After multiple tips kept pointing to him, the dog warden felt they had enough to ask him directly.
"When we went to talk to him, he just admitted to everything," said Pocock. "The reasoning was different than what the forensic evidence shows, but he never denied killing the dog."
According to Gilleland's testimony to the dog warden, he had been walking his dog, whom he called Ganja, when she was suddenly hit by a car.
"He said the dog was laying there convulsing so he had no choice but to kill the dog," said Pocock.
But Pocock said the forensic evidence told a different story.
"The forensic evidence shows absolutely no sign of the dog ever being struck by a car. In fact, there was evidence that the dog had multiple broken bones prior that had healed," said Pocock.
Gilleland now faces a cruelty to a companion animal charge, a fifth-degree felony.
For Pocock, who has dedicated her entire adult life to defending animals, being able to effectively close this case is nothing short of a relief.
"Being able to bring whatever just happens from this situation for this dog...we all feel good about that," said Pocock.
Gilleland's sentencing is still pending and is expected to be scheduled in the next six to eight weeks.
Pocock said anonymous tips were key to solving this case. If you see a situation where you think an animal might be in an abusive situation, call your local dog warden.
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