Former college athletes beat duck with baseball bat so brutally it had to be euthanized, police say

Two former student-athletes at an Alabama community college beat a duck with a baseball bat so severely that it had to be euthanized, according to AL.com.

Jacob Thomas Frye, a 19-year-old who now lives in Georgia, was arrested for the crime last Friday. His accomplice, Thomas "Landon" Grant, also 19, was arrested last month. Both previously played baseball at Central Alabama Community College in Alexander City.

Det. Robert Oliver of the Alexander City Police Department said that members of the baseball team attended a party on May 5 when they went to a pond on the college's campus and grabbed a white Muscovy duck.

Frye and Grant allegedly hit the duck with a bat and took it back to a nearby apartment. The teenagers then reportedly put the injured duck in a bag and continuously beat the bird to "put it out of its misery." The students later disposed of the bag, along with the duck, in the woods.

Oliver said that a coach subsequently heard some commotion in the area and found the wounded animal. It was taken to a veterinarian, who unfortunately had to euthanize it. The coach also notified school officials who, along with the police, launched investigations into the incident.

Grant was eventually arrested on May 31 and booked on a Class C felony, which is punishable by a minimum one-year prison sentence. He was released that same day after posting a $5,000 bond, and his court date is set for late July.

Oliver said that the investigation is ongoing and expects more arrests to be made.