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SATURDAY March 24,2007 1:15 AM ET UPDATE

This sad story keeps getting weirder.

TwinCities.com gives some more details about Anthony Albert Gomez (apparently, "Bubba" to his friends and family), about the relationship between Gomez and Crystal, and about the crime.

Although the initial reports on Thursday night said that Crystal had "befriended" Gomez but rejected the idea of being his girlfriend, it now appears that the 17-year-old Crystal was the 24-year-old Gomez's (that's Bubba to you) girlfriend last fall. According to the article, qouting Gomez's uncle and main apologist who is somehow named Betancourt, Gomez also liked to buy the teenaged girl "naughty clothes." Maybe a reader in MN can comment on the age of consent in your state.

Here's a quote from Uncle Louis Betancourt. He's the apologist for his nephew, the alleged dog decapitator Anthony Albert Gomez, a 24 year old who dates 17 year olds and buys them "naughty clothing."

"I'd say he did it out of love, and she pushed him to the limit."

The affidavit says Gomez named names of others involved. He also claims that Crystal was there when it happened, which she denies. I don't think I believe anything the guy says.

Authorities are open to there being additional suspects, and the investigation is still open. Read the entire linked TwinCities.com article. After the shock of what happened the Chevy nothing should surprise me, but I am really shocked and disgusted by this Betancourt character. If he had a hand in raising Gomez, it's no wonder they guy seems to be nothing but trouble.

Gomez is still in jail pending a $35,000 bail. Let's hope these folks can't pay it.

FRIDAY March 23, 2007 1:53 PM ET UPDATE

The suspect in Chevy's beheading has been charged, and The Star Tribune is now revealing his name as well as sick details of the depraved actions police say he committed.

Police say Anthony Albert Gomez has cell phone video of Chevy being decaptitated with a chain saw.

Anthony Albert Gomez, 24, at first denied any involvement in the death of "Chevy", an Austrialian Shepard mix, but later told police that he instigated others to do it, telling them to "cut its head off" and to do it with a chain saw, the complaint states.

[...]

Gomez was arrested Thursday while police executed a search warrant in his home in the 100 block of Granite Street. Police found evidence of blood splatter in the basement of his house.

Gomez, 24, was charged in Ramsey County District Court with one count of killing a companion animal and one count of animal cruelty done to threaten or terrorize another person.

Folks, it sounds as if others may have been involved in this disgusting act in addition to Gomez's alleged ringleading. No word on the potential penalty for these two crimes or any impending further arrests, but I'll keep an eye out.

More details below.

Police are not yet releasing the name of a 24-year-old man they have arrested in connection with the beheading of Chevy, Crystal Brown's Australian Shepherd-mix therapy dog. Crystal, a Minneapolis / Saint Paul, Minnesota 17-year-old, received Chevy's gift-wrapped head on her doorstep.

A reward offered by the Humane Society of the US for information about the crime grew from $2,500 to $20,000 due to donations from all over the world. Additionally, Crystal has received letters, cards and other well-wishesfrom as far away as Australia.

On Thursday, police recovered evidence that connects the man to the crime, Sgt. Jim Gray said. "He admitted to being there [when the dog was beheaded]," Gray said.

The suspect, 24, was jailed Thursday on suspicion of making terroristic threats. The Star Tribune isn't using his name because he hasn't yet been charged; that may happen as early as today and could include animal cruelty charges as well.

[...]

The suspect is a man whom Crystal had once befriended.

"He really has no one," she said. "He has no friends. I felt sorry for him."

He wanted Crystal to be his girlfriend. But she didn't want that, she said.

The family immediately suspected him in Chevy's killing. "I didn't know what he would do next," Shirley Brown said. "I wanted to stay awake in case someone came in."

Chevy's body was found in a park, and homicide investigators took on the case because of the implied threat against Crystal. She said she was more scared for her new puppy than for herself.

But she said that she tired of the ache inside as she lay in bed each night, imagining what Chevy's last moments were like.

I think there are few of us who haven't imagined the utter terror that Chevy must have faced in those final moments, and the heartbreak Crystal must have felt when she opened that package and saw the remains of her best friend. I hope there are multiple charges they can file against this vile person, and that he will be in jail for a very, very long time.

According to the UPI News Service, the suspect "was previously convicted in 2001 of fifth-degree assault and in 2005 of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon, causing substantial bodily harm."

I'll keep an eye out for updates.

EARLIER:

• Reward for Chevy's Killer Balloons to $20,000
• Reward for Beheaded Dog's Killer Upped
• A Gesture for Crystal Brown
• Girl Receives Disturbing Confirmation of Dog's Death