FAIRFIELD (AP) – A Fairfield man who beat a 4-month-old puppy to death and failed to show up for an 18-month jail term for aggravated animal cruelty was being sought by authorities on Wednesday.

Most of James Mayhew’s sentence had been suspended but District Attorney Evert Fowle says he now faces the full five years.

Mayhew, 26, beat the wolf hybrid puppy over a period of two months before it died last summer, police said. A veterinarian’s autopsy revealed a broken rib, a severely bruised lung and bruised muscles around the head and ears.

Mayhew apparently was upset because the puppy urinated in his apartment, Fowle said.

The prosecutor said he takes animal cruelty seriously because studies show people who abuse or torture animals are more likely to hurt people.

Police on Tuesday visited the apartment and a mobile home park.

Fairfield Police Chief John Emery said he investigated a rumor some weeks ago that Mayhew was living in Augusta, but that, too, failed to lead to his whereabouts.