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Mutilated animals, graffiti lead investigators to Salem man

FILE - A Salem Police Department vehicle. (KOIN)

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A Salem man has been arrested on multiple accounts of animal abuse after multiple reports of “suspicious” small animal deaths

Investigators say they were called to a business park on May 12, to look into the report of a pigeon that had been decapitated and disemboweled. They say they found the word “redrum” in graffiti near the animal.

Within the next few days, police officers were called back to the same business park to find a crow that had been mutilated in the same way and more graffiti near the body.

On May 19, a third report was filed from the same business park where a responding officer found a cat beheaded.

During their investigation, police narrowed in on 26-year-old Micah Smith. Based on evidence they were able to collect, officers arrested Smith. He is due to be arraigned Friday afternoon.