- Dog killer watched his victims

A FORMER Yackandandah man inflicted cruel deaths on four family pets and kidnapped others after he became obsessed with his neighbours’ dogs.

John Arthur Brewer, 66, stabbed one dog in the groin and poisoned two others with what was believed to be anti-freeze.

Another dog survived his attempts to drown it but died later from its injuries, Wodonga Court was told yesterday.

Brewer, who now lives in Albury, escaped jail yesterday when he was convicted, fined $1500 and placed on an 18-month community corrections order.

In court yesterday, magistrate John Murphy told Brewer his actions had caused “immense anxiety” in the community.

“It’s outrageous, what you have done, to say the least,” he told him.

“If you commit crimes like this in the future, bring your toothbrush because you will be going to jail.”

Mr Murphy said any breach of the bond he imposed could result in a three-month jail term.

That warning must have seemed even more ominous to Brewer when he was arrested again as soon as he left court yesterday.

He hadn’t been charged last night but was interviewed by police on unrelated matters that can not be published for legal reasons.

Before he was sentenced yesterday, the court was told that in May 2010, Brewer, who was employed as a registered nurse at the Beechworth Health Service, was spoken to about his own dogs barking excessively.

He admitted to Indigo Shire ranger Greg Doughty that his dogs barked but said it was because of all the dogs now living in a new estate on Racecourse Road, which his Yackandandah property overlooked.

On January 4 last year, Brewer went into the backyard of a home in Parkes Street and stabbed a family’s pet dog in the groin.

Neighbours found the dog, Mocha, alive but lying in a pool of blood.

She was later found to have a 10-centimetre-deep wound and had to be euthanised.

On January 21, Brewer stole another family’s dog from a home in the same street.

The dog, Grunter, was found in Benalla and collected by his owner.

Brewer again stole Grunter on April 13.

He drove to Barwidgee Creek at Mudgegonga and attempted to drown Grunter.

But Brewer was disturbed by a man and his son, who were fishing.

They took Grunter to a vet and his microchip led to his owner.

However, Grunter died a day later.