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Convicted Killer Found Not Guilty By Mental Defect In Dog Beating Case

GREENWOOD (KFSM) – A convicted killer accused of beating a dog in Greenwood with a baseball bat before throwing it over a fence has been found not guilty ...

GREENWOOD (KFSM) - A convicted killer accused of beating a dog in Greenwood with a baseball bat before throwing it over a fence has been found not guilty in an animal abuse case, officials say.

Arthur Hevel, 43, faced a charge of aggravated cruelty to animals and pleaded not guilty on Feb. 4. He was later found not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect on Friday (Oct. 3), according to a court official.

Hevel served 10 years in prison after a murder conviction dating back to 1987 in Oklahoma, according to authorities.

He was ordered to be committed to the custody of the Director of the Department of Human Services Mental Health Division and to be sent to the Arkansas State Hospital for a mental examination, officials said.

Jail records state that he has been transferred to the Arkansas State Mental Hospital.

In January, the Greenwood Police Department was called to the parking lot of a Sonic restaurant where eyewitnesses reported seeing Hevel chase a dog around a neighboring yard, hitting the dog repeatedly with a baseball bat.

Witnesses said they pleaded with Hevel not to hurt the dog, and he yelled obscenities at them. Witnesses told police Hevel then picked the dog up by its legs and threw it over the fence into the Sonic parking lot.

Officers said when they arrived, Hevel immediately raised his hands in a surrender position and admitted to beating the dog. When asked why he killed the dog, Hevel responded, “Because I’m a cold-blooded killer.”

Officers said they found the dog under a garbage bag in the Sonic parking lot. The dog was still alive but was too severely injured to be saved, so, they were forced to put it down.

Police reports say Hevel threatened his roommate with the same bat before attacking his dog.

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