HOLLYWOOD, Fla. – The man who Hollywood Police Department detectives believe beat, stabbed and trapped a pit bull named Ollie inside a blue suitcase was behind bars Wednesday.
Brendan Evans, 31, faces a charge of aggravated animal cruelty. Police officers said he had claimed to be a voodoo priest and said that he believed it was his religious right to kill a duck if he wanted.
In his refrigerator, Hollywood detectives found rats with their scalps removed, cat paws and blood. There was an 8-pointed star on a kitchen wall, and a shrine with candles for the "Duke of Hell." He had a Crime Stoppers' flyer showing a picture of Ollie ripped in two.
"We were all pulling for Ollie to survive, but unfortunately he didn't make it," Acting Chief Chris O'Brien said in a statement. "However, due to our investigation, we are no able to provide justice for Ollie."
Some animal activists recognized Evan Wednesday night. They had been searching for evidence of reports that he had been sacrificing kittens. They used social media to distribute his photo anonymously earlier this year.
Miranda Grossman, a spokeswoman for the department, said detectives searched Evans' apartment at 1935 Lee St., on Nov. 14. It was about a month after a couple saw a dog's paw was sticking out from the suitcase and called police.
Officers rushed Ollie to the VCA Hollywood Animal Hospital, where veterinarians learned he had been stabbed more than 50 times. Animal lovers from all over the world pulled together to help Grateful Paws Dog and Cat Rescue to raise funds to help Ollie survive the vicious attack.
When Ollie died at the VCA Hollywood Animal Hospital two days later, animal lovers were waiting for justice in the case. Linda Ream, a spokeswoman for the hospital, said Ollie remained friendly and sweet until his last day.
"When he died, there were tears," Ream said.
Detectives linked Evans' DNA to the suitcase where Ollie was found Oct. 10. Evans, who had a history of domestic violence, had been on probation for a bank robbery in Hernando County and detectives linked his fingerprints to a residential burglary.
"He was taken into custody for the burglary and violation of probation," Grossman said.
After detectives found evidence linking him to the crime, Evans was charged in the animal cruelty case while in custody. He remained at Broward County Jail Wednesday night. The Facebook account he was using before his arrest was "inactive."