Dog News

Kidnap Victim Escapes with Her Life Thanks to Heroic Pit Bull

by Melanie

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7.13.14 - Kidnapper's Dog Bites Him

Dogs know right from wrong, and if you need proof that when it comes to bad behavior, the party on the wrong end of the leash is getting the blame, check this out:  a New Mexico man trapped a woman in his home and threatened to kill her, and when he ordered his dog to bite her, it bit him instead, allowing the woman to get away.

Las Cruces man Gabriel Garcia is reported to have trapped a woman in his home, made sexual advances toward her, dragged her around by her hair, and threatened to end her life.

He then threw her down the stairs and ordered his nine-month-old pit bull puppy to bite her.  It clamped down on him instead, giving the terrified woman the opportunity to escape.

Garcia was arrested and jailed for kidnapping, assault and criminal sexual contact, and the hero pup was taken in by animal control.  Sadly, the abusive man was bonded out, and after the dog’s 10-day quarantine was up, it was returned to him.

“From what I have heard, there was no reason to believe the dog would be in any danger in returning it to the owner,” said Curtis Childress, Animal Cruelty Coordinator for the Dona Ana County Sheriff’s Office.  “As for the owner, he has a right to have his property returned. Animals in New Mexico are considered personal property.”

In addition, it is not animal control, but the shelter who determines what should happen to a dog in a situation such as this.

“Animal control had no cause to keep the dog,” Childress said to HuffPost.  “The decision to return it would have come from the animal shelter.”

He believes that Animal Services Center of the Mesilla Valley would not likely hesitate to give the dog back to Garcia.

“We have taken many animals in that we did not return to the owners for various reasons, and [the shelter] would call the owners and tell them to come get them or they were going to kill [the pets],” he said.  “We had to start getting court orders to stop this from happening.”

Good luck, hero doggie.  Hopefully with the world’s eyes turned in your direction, you will be safe.