Jenelle Evans Made Up Story About David Eason Shooting Her Dog For Publicity, Police Say

Jenelle lost her role on "Teen Mom 2" over the reported incident

Did Jenelle Evans' husband David Eason really shoot and kill their dog? Police have now closed their investigation into the case due to lack of evidence and say the reality star made up the story for publicity.

In May, the North Carolina native had told Us Weekly on the record that David "killed" her French bulldog dog Nugget because the pet "snapped" at their 2-year-old daughter, Ensley. She added that her husband "just took her and shot her in the woods...about two acres away from the house." Jenelle later told E! News, "Thankfully the kids did not see him shoot the dog." She mourned the loss of the pet on Instagram.

Jenelle lost her role on "Teen Mom 2" over the reported incident and police, animal control services and child protective services launched investigations. She and David soon temporarily lost custody of Ensley, Jenelle's son Kaiser and David's older daughter Maryssa. Following a legal battle, they recently regained custody of the kids. On Thursday, local police released a statement about closing their joint investigation with animal control and details of what Jenelle told them.

"[Jenelle] contacted Columbus County Sheriff's Office by public service. [She] advised that on April 29th, at approximately 6:30 pm, her dog bit her daughter, leaving a scratch on her face," the Columbus County Sheriff's Office in Whiteville, North Carolina said in a statement to E! News on Thursday. "[She] advised that her husband, David Eason, threw the dog outside. She then advised that after David realized that the dog scratched their child, he went outside and shot the dog. During this conversation, Jenelle stated that she did hear a gunshot but did not witness the incident."

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Police said that May 13, they conducted a search of the couple's property, which David authorized, and found no blood evidence or any other physical evidence to validate that an animal had been fatally injured there. A day later, Jenelle was questioned about the alleged incident she had reported.

"Jenelle's accounts were inconsistent with her original account of the events that occurred on April 29," the statement said. "Jenelle advised that she was inside with her children at the time of the alleged event. She advised that she never heard or saw anything to indicate that David shot her dog. Jenelle advised that she did not want the Columbus County Sheriff's Office or the District Attorney's Office to continue with the investigation. Jenelle advised that this was her decision that she made of her own free will. She advised that she was not coerced into making this decision."

"Jenelle advised that 'she don't know where the dog is,'" the statement continued. "She also advised that 'I don't know if she was shot or killed or not.' Jenelle stated that the reason she filed the animal cruelty report was for the publicity and because she did not know where her dog was."

Jenelle and David have not commented on the police statement.

"Columbus County Sheriff's Office Criminal Investigators located no physical evidence to substantiate that the allegations against David Eason are factual," the police statement said. "The evidence collected indicates that the allegations of animal cruelty were fabricated. Therefore, Columbus County Sheriff's Office is closing this investigation. No charges will be filed in this case."

Police also said they closed an investigation into a separate incident, in which Jenelle and her husband had on May 15 received an envelope containing a white powder. The substance was tested and deemed unharmful.

The statement also said that "the quantity of calls and emails" that the Sheriff's Office and other agencies received about the alleged animal cruelty case was "so abundant that individuals had to be removed from their normal duties to answer thousands of redundant calls," which "slowed the progress of the investigation, and delayed normal daily operations."

"Social media can be a great tool when utilized for positive interactions," the statement said "In this case, social media posts were utilized to incite follower's emotions to gain publicity."

--Reporting by Jessica Finn

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