Man Accused of Robbing, Beating Girlfriend, Hanging Her Puppy

Gerald Anthony Ortega is accused of hanging his girlfriend's dog, a Jack Russell terrier puppy like this one

​A man charged with beating his girlfriend, breaking into her apartment, and hanging her Jack Russell terrier puppy will be arraigned today.

Gerald Anthony Ortega, 25, has a court date today at 1:30 p.m. at the Contra Costa Superior Court in Pittsburg, according to the Contra Costa County public defender's office.

The Antioch man was arrested last week after a Concord woman accused him of being an abusive boyfriend for three years, threatening to kill her children, and burglarizing her home. During that break-in, Ortega allegedly strangled the dog with an electrical cord suspended from a ceiling light fixture.

Ortega faces charges of inflicting corporal injury to a spouse or cohabitant, cruelty to animals, and making terrorist threats, according to the Concord Police.