A Butler man has admitted to breaking into a woman’s house last year to steal and kill her dog, according to police.

Joseph W. Hilliard, 27, of Butler, is accused of killing the woman’s 10-year-old pug before leaving it in the woods behind a bar located on Greenwood Drive in Butler Township, according to an affidavit filed Wednesday with Judge William Fullerton.

The exact charges against Hilliard are pending review by an officer Friday evening.

Police said Hilliard on Saturday, Jan. 25, came to the Butler City Police Department where he said he wished to admit to a crime.

At that point, police said Hilliard confessed that he climbed through an open window of the ex-girlfriend’s house on Jan. 5, 2024, grabbed the 10-year-old dog, and left. Police said Hilliard said that at one point he wished to return the dog, but instead hit it “in rage.“

He then took the dog into the woods behind Rock Ann Haven and killed it, police said.

Shortly before then, according to the affidavit, the girlfriend, who met Hilliard through a dating app, told him that he was making her uncomfortable, and she did not want to be friends with him anymore.

Although the girlfriend reported the incident shortly after it happened, the investigation was tabled for over a year due to lack of evidence. At the time, it was noted that the dog was the only item missing, that other valuables in the home were untouched, and there were no signs of forced entry.

According to the affidavit, during the investigation, police did speak to Hilliard’s parents. Police said they did mention concerns for his mental health, but told police that they had no reason to believe he would take the dog.

Hilliards is held at the Butler County Prison as of Jan. 30.