- Utah, USA -
On Wednesday, July 13, a judge sentenced 41-years-old MICHAEL PAUL BUSICO (pictured), accused of setting a dog of fire.
BUSICO was sentenced to 1 to 15 years in Utah State Prison for the arson conviction, and up to 5 years for the conviction of animal cruelty.
Additionally, the judge ordered the sentences to run consecutively, meaning BUSICO could serve up to 20 years in prison if he serves the full time.
Deseret News reports that in May 2022, BUSICO had pleaded guilty to arson, a second-degree felony, and torture of a companion animal, a third-degree felony, in exchange for two other charges being dismissed.
On March 1, 2021, BUSICO took a 4-year-old female Red Heeler named Dixie from her yard, he then took her to the frontage road off I-80 near 9300 West, poured fuel on Dixie and lit her on fire.
A witness saw BUSICO set Dixie on fire. The incident also started a small fire in the brush and Tooele City Police and firefighters were alerted. According to charging documents, the witness along with the officers found Dixie walking in the road with burns over “her entire body and severe injuries to her face.”
Dixie’s guardian contacted the police after seeing news reports on the incident and after recognizing the description of the suspect. They told investigators that a member of the family had recently broken up with BUSICO.
Police believed BUSICO took Dixie “to directly intimidate and threaten” his ex-girlfriend and her family.
Authorities located BUSICO’s truck at his father’s house in Tooele and when he saw officers approaching, he ran like the coward he is because scum like him only go after harmless dogs.
BUSICO was tracked down and taken into custody.
Dixie suffered second- and third-degree burns over 30% of her body. She did receive treatment at a local clinic but after a week of treatment and surgeries, she was sadly euthanized on March 8, 2021. Dixie’s guardians explained that Dixie wouldn’t have been able to have a good quality of life again and had been given a year to a year and a half to live under a best-case scenario.
A GoFundMe set up to help with Dixie’s medical bills had collected more than $12,000.
Dixie’s guardians claim past abuse by BUSICO on his ex-girlfriend and said that he and his ex-girlfriend owned a Yorkie who “disappeared after an argument” and was never found.
BUSICO has issued a written apology to Dixie’s family and I understand that for information purposes I should publish its content.
However, you will forgive me if I don’t because out of respect for Dixie, there is NOTHING that BUSICO could say that justifies Dixie’s death.
With regard to the sentence, Talia Butler, Salt Lake County Animal Services Division Director, said: “The outcome of this case is a huge win for pets in Utah. This is a step in the right direction and emphasizes that animals cannot be tortured to manipulate and hurt other humans. Salt Lake County Animal Services hopes that these strict penalties will deter future animal and domestic abuse cases.”
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Pictures shared from Trista Dawn
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