Man Arrested After Shooting Baby-Biting Dog

A 50-year-old Saugus man is facing animal cruelty and firearm charges after he allegedly shot and killed his English bulldog Sunday after it bit a 9-month-old baby and others.

Richard Maltais was charged with felony animal cruelty, possession of a firearm without a Firearms Identification (FID) card (two counts), possession of ammunition without an FID card and discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a building, according to Saugus Police. Maltais has never applied for an FID card in Saugus, police said.

Shortly after 1 p.m. Sunday afternoon, police responded to a Lynn Fells Parkway residence in Saugus for a report of shots fired. At the scene, officers discovered that Maltais, the homeowner, shot his bulldog three times in the head after it bit the baby and “multiple other people” inside the residence, according to police.

Maltais told police that the dog had previously been a rescue dog and it became aggressive, according to a department release. Police found the body of the dog under the home’s deck.

In addition to two spent 0.380-caliber shell casings, police said they recovered a SIG-Sauer P230 0.380 handgun, a Ruger 0.22 Rifle and boxes of assorted ammunition.

Maltais will appear in Lynn District Court at a later date, police said.