Hollister police arrested a juvenile in an animal cruelty case involving video of the suspect apparently tossing a Maltese puppy dog to the ground.
According to Hollister police:
Hollister Police Animal Care and Services Officers arrested a 15-year-old juvenile for felony animal cruelty.
On Jan. 30, officers from Sunnyvale Animal Control contacted Hollister Police Animal Care and Services regarding a report of animal cruelty in the city of Hollister. Sunnyvale Animal Control Officers obtained a Snapchat video depicting a male suspect posing with a toy breed dog in his arms before throwing the dog to the ground. The video appeared to show the puppy landed approximately seven to 10 feet in front of him.
Hollister Animal Care and Services Officers conducted further investigation and discovered there were other incidents of cruelty that had previously been unreported involving the same dog and the same suspect. Sunnyvale Animal Control also had information of a previous incident where the suspect had allegedly kicked the small animal and it landed several feet away.
Hollister Animal Care and Services Officers were able to confirm the identity of the 15-year-old juvenile and the location of his home in Hollister. On Feb. 1, Animal Control officers responded to the home of the juvenile and took custody of the dog depicted in the video. The dog in the video was an 8 month old black and white Maltese named “Bella” weighing 5.8 pounds.
Bella was immediately transported to a veterinarian for a health examination and then taken to the Hollister Animal Shelter.
On Feb. 3, the juvenile was taken into custody at his home and booked at San Benito County Juvenile Hall on charges of felony animal cruelty.
Bella will be held at the Hollister Animal Shelter throughout the remainder of the investigation. Hollister Police Animal Care and Services would like to thank the City of Sunnyvale Animal Control Department for their assistance in this case.
Anyone having information on this case is asked to call AC Supervisor Kara Ells at 636-4320. Persons wishing to remain anonymous can call the WeTip Hotline at 800-78-CRIME. Information provided to WeTip may qualify for a reward.
