An Orangeburg man who pled guilty to burning a puppy alive on Facebook Live in 2024 was sentenced Thursday morning.
According to the US Department of Justice, Desmond Brown pled guilty to animal crushing and burning.
Brown was sentenced to five years in federal prison and three years of supervision upon release.
The conditions prohibit him from owning or possessing any animals.
Brown was sentenced at 10 a.m. by U.S. District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis at Columbia’s Matthew J. Perry Federal Courthouse.
The penalty marks South Carolina’s first prosecution under the federal Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture Act.
“Brown’s actions were cruel, heinous and depraved,” said U.S. Attorney Bryan Stirling for the District of South Carolina.
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to working with law enforcement to investigate and prosecute animal cruelty in South Carolina.”
On December 18, 2024, officials received reports of a Facebook Live video in which Brown threw a puppy into the flames.
Officials said he repeatedly booted the dog into the flames, causing it to burn alive.
Officers later discovered a deceased puppy in a wooded area near the scene.
Prosecutors claimed Brown acknowledged to burning the dog during recorded jail calls following his arrest.
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