A Florida man is being held by police after being accused of using a baseball bat to beat a dog so badly that it had to be put to death. The attack was caught on video.
According to the Daytona Beach News-Journal, Gary Holmes was arrested in connection to the incident that led to the animal being euthanized. The suspect was free on bond after being arrested for allegedly assaulting a woman, before the Oct. 15 dog attack.
Police officials said 35-year-old Holmes was apprehended Oct, 17, and charged with felony cruelty to animals. He is in custody at the Volusia County Branch Jail without bond.
Holmes himself called the police and told authorities he was attacked by a large dog in the 400 block of Jean Street. When police arrived, he was holding a bat and a pocket knife. Cops instructed Holmes to drop his weapons before they spoke to him about the incident.
Holmes told police that he was walking when a large dog approached him, became hostile and bit him on the face. That’s when he “took it to the dog” and nearly beat it to death, according to the report.
He told officers the dog was still on the ground and he didn’t know who owned the dog. Holmes did have a small cut on his face.
Several days later, police officials were given surveillance video that disputed Holmes’ claim. The footage revealed a man who appears to be Holmes walking with a black and white dog on a leash that showed no signs of aggression toward him.
TRIGGER WARNING
Reportedly, the video shows the man attaching the leash to the stairwell of a building on Jean Street. He then took the bat and hit the dog several times. The dog got away and tried to flee but the man caught the animal on the second-floor landing and continued to beat it with the bat.
A police officer later found the dog bleeding on the ground. The canine was taken to the Ormond Beach Emergency Animal Hospital where it was put down.
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