WEARE, N.H. (AP) – A 17-year-old boy arrested Saturday in the kidnap and torture of a poodle last week is engaged to marry the niece of the owner, who said it would be “horrible” if he is to blame.

“Shock is putting it mildly,” Ruth Mariano of Hooksett said of the arrest.

“If he did do this, it’s going to be just horrible. If he didn’t do this, I hope he gets cleared.”

Stephen Hess was arrested early Saturday morning and charged with falsifying physical evidence. He was freed on $10,000 bail. Police said he could face other charges, and that there could be more arrests.

Mariano said she had not talked to her niece, Anna Hopper, 19, but the two planned to be married this month. She said they and their month-old baby have been living in a mobile home on family property in Weare between the homes of her mother and brother.

She said Hess has played with the dog, and with her two sons, 5 and 10 years old.

Police said they arrested Hess after searching his residence and seizing undisclosed evidence. Police did not reveal what led them to Hess.

The 4-year-old poodle named Barney was found last Sunday evening alongside a road near the Weare residence, tied and scraped in a way suggesting he had been dragged along the road. He had been missing since the previous night.

Mariano said she couldn’t imagine how anyone could do such a thing.

The dog was in critical condition at a veterinary hospital Sunday. Mariano, who has had the dog since he was a puppy, was optimistic he will survive, although he will lose an eye.

Mariano said the family has been touched by the outpouring of support for the dog. Friends and relatives had raised more than $1,000 for a reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible.

AP-ES-08-31-03 1512EDT

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