Atlanta Falcons linebacker Prince Shembo was released by the team on Friday after being charged with aggravated cruelty to animals stemming from an incident where he allegedly killed his ex-girlfriend's dog.
"We are aware of the charges that have been filed against Prince Shembo," the team said in a statement. "We are extremely disappointed that one of our players is involved in something like this. Accordingly, we have decided to waive Prince Shembo."
According to the police report from Gwinnett County, the small Yorkie was left alone with Shembo in April and when his girlfriend (now ex-girlfriend) came to retrieve the dog, she found it unresponsive.
#BREAKING - Falcons linebacker Prince Shembo charged with death of a dog. MORE: http://t.co/H8J95kzllh #fox5atl pic.twitter.com/uO6Pdi8i7p
— FOX 5 Atlanta (@FOX5Atlanta) May 29, 2015
At that point, the girlfriend, Denicia Williams, took the dog to a nearby vet where the animal was pronounced dead. Williams called police on April 19 after Shembo admitted that he had kicked the dog several times.
Veterinarians were able to determine that the cause of death was blunt force trauma after performing a necropsy on the dog, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution. The vets also noted that the animal "had significant internal injuries."
The AJC also added that the dog had "a fractured rib, fractured liver, abdominal hemorrhage, thoracic hemorrhage, extensive bruising and hemorrhage in the muscles in her front leg and shoulders, head trauma, hemorrhage and edema in lungs, hemorrhage between the esophagus and trachea, and hemorrhage in the left eye with internal injuries."
Shembo has been with the Falcons since being selected in the 2014 NFL Draft out of Notre Dame. While at Notre Dame, Shembo was accused of sexual assault by a student named Lizzy Seeberg, who later committed suicide.
Shembo was never charged, but he did admit at the NFL Combine that he knew Seeberg.
As for Shembo's most recent incident, you can read the police report below (via SB Nation).
