Man arrested for allegedly throwing puppy onto Bronx street
BELMONT, The Bronx (WABC) -- Update: 77-year-old Loro Gjonaj, of Yonkers, faces animal abuse charges in connection to this incident.
Police are searching for the man who they said dragged a puppy from a pickup truck and threw her onto the street in the Bronx.
It happened around 12:30 p.m. September 17 at the intersection of 182nd Street and Belmont Avenue in Belmont.
Police said the suspect was observed dragging a female beagle puppy from the rear of a white Lincoln Mark LT pickup truck and later throwing the puppy onto the street.
The suspect, who fled the scene, is described as a white male who was last seen wearing a blue shirt and dark pants.
Police said 4-month-old puppy, named Cleopatra, suffered a serious injury and was treated by a veterinarian.
She was later taken to Looking Glass Animal Rescue in Ridgefield, Connecticut, and Jodi Harris-Stern, president of the rescue, told Eyewitness News Cleopatra suffered more than just a head injury. She said the pup had broken eye sockets, hematoma and more bruisings and wounds from unknown sources.
"She's actually miraculously recovering. I'm blown away," Harris-Stern said.
Cleo now lives in a foster home, where she's regularly taking pain medications and antibiotics.
"She has a long road ahead of her, but she's really a fighter," Harris-Stern said.
Looking Glass Animal Rescue is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to an arrest.
Anyone with information in regards to the above incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477). The public can also submit tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577.
Click here if you'd like to donate to the rescue that's supporting Cleo.
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