Cat strangled, beaten to death
Loveland, CO (US)Incident Date: Saturday, Feb 7, 2009
County: Larimer
Disposition: Alleged
Alleged: Jason W. Muchow
Case Updates: 1 update(s) available
A Loveland mail carrier is accused of stealing mail from a former girlfriend, breaking into her apartment, then strangling and bludgeoning her cat, according to state and federal charges.
When authorities arrested Jason W. Muchow, 33, on Feb. 7, a machine gun and ammunition were found in his bedroom, according to the federal indictment.
In addition to state charges for the break-in and the death of the cat, Muchow faces federal charges of mail theft and possession of an illegal assault rifle.
Each of the two mail-theft charges carries up to five years in prison and fines up to a $250,000.
He also faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine if convicted on the weapons charge, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Case UpdatesA plea deal has been reached with a former Loveland postal worker accused of strangling his girlfriend's cat.
Getting Jason Muchow in a Larimer County District Court to accept the deal connected to cruelty to animals and burglary charges might be the hardest part of the process.
Muchow is in federal custody after a federal grand jury in April indicted him on two counts of mail theft and one count of possessing a machine gun.
Deputy District Attorney David Vandenberg said district court's deal is connected to possible time served in the federal case.
He also had reservations about whether they could get Muchow transported from a federal prison to his district court hearing before settling the federal case.
A formal request must be made to get Muchow in court, and Judge Daniel Kaup said Thursday he would sign any paperwork needed to make that happen.
Muchow's attorney, Jerry Roselle, told Kaup that Muchow is expected to enter a plea in the federal case Aug. 20, but sentencing won't happen for three months after that.
Kaup agreed to set Muchow's next hearing after Aug. 20 but said he wanted to see the man in court.
"It is often very difficult to get their compliance, but we will try," Vandenberg said of transporting Muchow.
Muchow had worked at the downtown Loveland Valentine Station post office since 1997 and was a familiar face in the community. He was officially terminated May 12, though he had been on leave since his February arrest by Loveland police.
Police began investigating Muchow in December after the cat was found stuffed underneath a couch.
Loveland police reports on their investigation revealed Muchow might have converted an AK-47 rifle into a fully automatic weapon, which is illegal.
Muchow's next hearing in district court is Sept. 10. | Source: Coloradoan - Aug 3, 2009
Update posted on Aug 4, 2009 - 3:08PM |
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