Gwinnett woman Shernika Johnson arrested after dog found dead

A Gwinnett County woman faces animal cruelty charges after her puppy was found dead and her two other dogs emaciated in a locked garage.

Sheika Cecile Johnson, 30, was booked into the Gwinnett County jail, where she was being held Friday afteoon on $33,600 bond.

The property manager for Idlewylde Apartments, near Duluth, told police he opened the garage after numerous residents reported a foul odor, according to the police report obtained by the AJC. When he saw the 8-month-old dead pit bull and two other pit bulls in crates with empty bowls, he called Gwinnett County Animal Control, who then called police.

"The only food inside of the garage was in a bag on top of a dryer that was pushed up against the back of the garage and out of reach of any of the dogs," the police report states. "There was no water in the garage for any of the dogs."

The surviving dogs were taken to Gwinnett Animal Clinic for treatment, police said. The dogs weighed about 30 pounds each, less than half the normal weight for full-grown pit bulls, a veterinarian told police. The dead animal was transported to the University of Michigan to determine a cause of death, police said.