Colo. man charged for leaving nooses

DENVER, Dec. 19 (UPI) -- A Colorado man was arrested for racially harassing a coworker by allegedly leaving a dead squirrel in a noose at work.

Peter Lee Massaglia, 51, an employee of Arapahoe County, Colo., was arrested Tuesday on a misdemeanor harassment charge, The Denver Post said.

Massaglia works in the county's weatherization department with David Frazier, who found a noose on a rearview mirror in a work truck in September, then a dead squirrel with a noose on its neck in a workshed, the paper said.

The charge is punishable by six to 18 months in jail.