Munster man faces charges after recording himself torturing stolen animals
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A man from Munster faces charges after recording himself torturing stolen animals and posting the videos on social media.
Police arrested 35-year-old Nikola Kutansky on Monday for knowingly torturing or mutilating of a vertebrate animal, according to the Indiana Department of Natural Resources.
An investigation into Kutansky’s activities began in 2019, when he was identified as a suspect in a 2018 break-in and burglary at the Willow Slough Fish and Wildlife area in Newtown County. He currently faces charges of theft and burglary in connection to the break-in.
While reviewing Kutansky’s Facebook, Google, and Verizon accounts in May 2021, police found videos of chickens and a lamb believed to have been stolen from Buckley Homestead, a property owned by the Lake County Parks and Recreation Department in Lowell.
The photos and videos showed Kutansky shooting a BB gun at the chickens and torturing the lamb, according to court documents. Police say Kutansky filmed himself cutting the lamb’s throat while it was still alive and later posted the video to Facebook.
A court date has not been announced.