Authorities arrest man who tossed dog over fence at a Riverside County cell tower
Authorities on Thursday announced that they had taken the man caught on video tossing his dog over a razor wire-topped fence at a Riverside County cell service tower into custody.
Video of the incident, which occurred on Dec. 15, shows the man hurling his dog over a tall fence lined with razor wire at a cell phone tower located atop a hill near Flossie Way and Pourroy Road, before walking away and leaving the 8-year-old male pitbull mix named KO behind.
Due to the tower's security camera and the quick efforts of workers, the dog was only there for around three hours before being taken to the Western Riverside County/City Animal Shelter in Jurupa Valley. He suffered minor injuries as a result of being thrown over the fence, but in all was deemed okay following the incident.
According to Riverside County Animal Services, the man, 30-year-old Robert Ruiz Jr., was arrested at his home. Authorities utilized data from the dog's microchip to track his prior locations to a residence in Temecula, but the dog owner no longer appeared to live at the address. After additional investigation, they were able to track Ruiz to a residence in Winchester, where he was arrested without further incident.
He has been booked on felony animal cruelty and a misdemeanor charge of abandonment.
Animal Services also said that after his arrest Ruiz said that he thought he was doing the right thing, and that he didn't want to take the dog to a shelter for undisclosed reasons.
The dog, now renamed Ken, was adopted by an Orange County woman after she learned of the incident, giving the pup a new "leash" on life.
