A Kearney man has pleaded no contest to animal cruelty after being accused of dragging a horse behind his trailer.

Tyler Brockman entered the plea Friday in Dawson County Court. He faces up to five years in prison when he's sentenced in May.

Witnesses say Brockman was seen leaving the Sumner Rodeo on July Fourth with a horse tied behind a trailer, and the horse was being dragged. One witness stopped Brockman, who put the animal in the trailer and left.

A short time later, Brockman was stopped by a sheriff's deputy in Buffalo County and arrested on suspicion of drunken driving. Authorities found the horse dead two days later.

Brockman has already pleaded no contest to drunken driving and been given 15 days in jail and a $500 fine.