When he brought a dog’s lifeless body to an animal hospital Tuesday morning, a Cobb County man said he already knew what had happened to the poodle, according to police.

“He stated he knew exactly what happened, he did it, he hit the dog, and stated to (a witness) it was more like he beat the dog,” an arrest warrant states.

Police were called to the Banfield Pet Hospital on Austell Road, where Darwin Kerrington Thompson brought the 8-month-old poodle, according to the warrant, obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. A veterinarian at the hospital told police that the injuries to the female dog, Brooklyn, were consistent with being beaten rather than attacked by another animal, the warrant states.

Thompson, of a Marietta address, was arrested at the animal hospital and charged with aggravated cruelty to animals, a felony, according to police records.

He was booked into the Cobb County jail, where he was being held Wednesday afternoon on $5,000 bond, booking records showed.

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Julian Conley listens during opening statements in his trial at Fulton County Superior Court in Atlanta on Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025. The 25-year-old is accused of fatally shooting 8-year-old Secoriea Turner in July 2020. (Abbey Cutrer/AJC)

Credit: abbey.cutrer@ajc.com