Waukegan man accused of animal torture, cruelty in the deaths of three dogs

A Waukegan man has been jailed on $750,000 bail for, authorities allege, using hammers, a baseball bat and a plastic bag in the torture and beating deaths of three pit bulls.

Juan Rositas, 49, faces three felony counts of animal torture and three felony counts of aggravated animal cruelty. If found guilty, he could be sentenced up to seven years in prison on the torture charges and up to five years on the cruelty charges, authorities said Wednesday.

Rositas was ordered held in Lake County jail by Judge Christopher Stride until he posts the required 10 percent of his bond. He is also not allowed to be released until after he receives psychological testing through Lake County pretrial services.

A family member who identified herself as Rositas' daughter cried while the charges were read in bond court. She declined to comment after the hearing.

Assistant State's Attorney Steve DeRue said in court that Rositas was charged for killing and burying the animals between last Thanksgiving and New Year's Day. DeRue said the dogs lived with Rositas in his house on the 100 block of Fulton Avenue.

He would not comment on the motive behind the attacks.

"This is truly a disturbing situation, and we will prosecute it to the fullest extent of the law," Lake County State's Attorney Michael Nerheim said.

DeRue said one dog was pulled off the ground by its collar and choked, hit with a claw hammer and punched repeatedly while being tortured. The dog was killed when Rositas placed a plastic bag over its head and suffocated it, DeRue said.

Another dog was punched and kicked repeatedly during a two-week period in December, DeRue said. The dog died when Rositas hit it in the head with a sledgehammer, DeRue said.

The third dog was hit repeatedly with a claw hammer and a baseball bat until it died Jan. 1.

The dogs were buried in Rositas' backyard, DeRue said. All of the animals were later exhumed from the property and given a canine autopsy to determine the cause of death.

Rositas was also charged in bond court with a misdemeanor count of domestic battery.

If he is released on bail, he is ordered to abstain from drugs or alcohol, abide by a curfew set at a later date by the court, and not have contact with the owner of the dogs.

He was appointed a public defender Wednesday. He is due back in court May 8 for a preliminary hearing.