Arrest Made in Charlestown Landscaper Dog Poisoning Case

Police made an arrest in a case of alleged dog poisoning that shocked the neighborhood.

Police announced Friday that 53-year-old landscaper Kenneth Hyland is in custody, suspected of soaking hot dogs in antifreeze and leaving them for pets to eat. An area outside the Bricklayers Apprentice Fund at 550 Medford St. is the site of the controversy.

The poisoned wieners may have been intended as a warning to dog owners to pick up after their animals.

At least three dog owners recently told police at District A-15 they saw a landscaper at that location leave what they believe to be poisoned hot dog pieces on the grass.

One resident who reported the incident told police that he saw the landscaper with “a [five]-gallon bucket of a blue/green solution believed to be antifreeze with hot dogs soaking inside.”

The witness said that he saw the landscaper spread the hotdog pieces around in the grass after completing his work.

“The witness confronted the suspect, stating ‘are you trying to poison the dogs?’” a police report read.

“The suspect replied ‘yes,’” the witness told police. The pair argued before the landscaper left. Once the landscaper had gone, the witness collected the hot dog pieces in his own five-gallon bucket before informing police of the incident. Two neighbors accompanied him to the district A-15 police department. They told officers that they had seen the same man performing the landscaping at earlier times and had noticed hotdog pieces left behind after his departure.

Durty Harry’s Doggie Boutique posted on Facebook that several customers have reported having sick dogs, possibly as a result of the hot dog pieces.

Police took the collected hot dogs as evidence.

The woman who answered the phone at the Bricklayers Apprentice Fund earlier this week said that no one within the organization would speak to the press on this matter.

Hyland will face a judge on Monday, police said.