Man Accused of Using Pit Bull as a Weapon

A man was indicted on a murder charge for allegedly ordering his pit bull to attack his common-law wife, in a case investigated by a homicide detective and an animal expert.

Authorities say Jeffrey Mann, 36, ordered the 70-pound dog, named Mack, to repeatedly attack Angela Kaplan after the couple argued in their home Sept. 2. She died at the scene.

Although Mann said the attack was unprovoked, police Detective Michaelene Taliano said she was suspicious. Of the more than 100 wounds the 28-year-old woman suffered, none were to her neck or throat, which are usually a dog’s favorite targets, she said.

“We believe the dog was instigated and reinstigated and reinstigated to attack,” said animal behaviorist Karen Arnoff, who put the animal through a series of tests.