PROVIDENCE, R.I. — State officials are warning animal shelters and the public about a sex offender, convicted of torturing and killing small animals, and his girlfriend, who's charged with desecrating gravestones.

They believe that Anthony Stravato, 25, of East Providence, will kill again, and that his girlfriend, Alyssa LaMountain, 20, of Warren, may help him by adopting or buying animals.

Stravato was released on Friday from the Adult Correctional Institutions after serving at least eight months, and LaMountain was arraigned Tuesday on charges including stealing gravestones from a cemetery in Warren. She is also under investigation after Warren police found animal bones in a glass jar and wooden box at her house at 6 Greenhouse Court, according to an affidavit file in District Court accompanying a search warrant.

A witness told Warren police that LaMountain had talked about cruel things that she and Stravato did to cats, and that she used an ax that she kept in her bedroom, according to the affidavit. The witness said he found cat paws inside a ziplock bag inside the mini-refrigerator in her bedroom, the affidavit said.

Warren Deputy Chief Joseph Loiselle said Wednesday that the bones found at LaMountain's house were being tested, and the investigation was ongoing. The police also seized a surgical kit, a pair of metal tongs, and a Ziplock bag with "unknown contents," according to the warrant returned to District Court on Wednesday.

Stravato was convicted last year of mutilating and killing his mother's cat "Cuddles" and a rat in East Providence, and for sending disturbing messages about mutilating animals and obscene photos to an underage girl in Warren. Stravato is a registered Level 3 sex offender, considered most likely to reoffend.

At the time of his arrest in 2014, Stravato's mother told East Providence police that he had a history of mental illness and had been institutionalized before. His father is a retired Providence police officer, Louis Stravato, who was a competitor on "The Amazing Race" series on CBS.

Anthony Stravato's recent release from the ACI prompted the state Department of Environmental Management to send an advisory to all licensed animal-care facilities against letting him or LaMountain adopt or buy any animals. Stravato is prohibited by court order from having any contact with animals, but LaMountain is not.

"Cases such as this one deserve special attention and consideration, based on the past history of violence, propensity to re-offend and other factors," J.R. Ventura, spokesman for the Department of Corrections, said in a statement. "We want to make sure the well-being of animals and the public is not at risk. Community awareness and communication, interdepartmental collaboration, and very close supervision are some of the added measures that we utilize in cases like this to ensure safety.”

On his Facebook page, where he posted as "Anthony Homiecidez Stravato," he wrote in 2015 about his obsession with death: "as n ill prob be tha next serial killer since i have a serial killer trait. im sure i knew it already. i used to watch my cats die all tha time when i was young so i began to be fasinated with death when i was 6."

One friend asked why he kept killing, if he didn't like who he was when he did it, and Stravato replied: "yes i do like it i enjoyed it."

He also wrote: "9 animal souls possessed all together i will keep increasing n make art out of it all x3."

—amilkovi@providencejournal.com

(401) 277-7213

On Twitter: @AmandaMilkovits