Man admits to beheading roommate's dog because she owed him rent, police say

BUCKEYE, Ariz. — An Arizona man was arrested after police said he cut the head off of his roommate’s dog Saturday night.

Police said the woman was moving out of a home she shared with Jose Vega-Meza. Her dog had been with her for part of the day, but then she said she lost track of the animal.

A few hours later, the woman and others who were helping her pack her belongings saw Vega-Meza take a small box into a truck. When asked what was in the box, the woman said Vega-Meza smiled at her, AZCentral.com reported. When she opened the box, she found her "dead, mutilated, headless dog inside," police said, according to AZCentral.com.

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The woman contacted police Sunday, the day after the alleged crime, because she said she was so upset over what happened, Tucson.com reported.

Police said Vega-Meza admitting to wrapping the dog with string and cutting it with a razor blade, KTVK reported. He told police he did it because the woman owed him and his mother rent money. He also told police he knew what he was doing was wrong, KTVK reported.

Court documents state that Vega-Meza also admitted to the torture and killing of other neighborhood animals, KTVK reported.

When he was describing what he did to the animals, police said he laughed, according to AZCentral.

Vega-Meza faces animal cruelty charges. He was being held in a Phoenix jail, Tucson.com reported.

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