VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — A Deltona teenager was charged with a felony Monday after Volusia County deputies say a neighborhood security camera caught him abusing his dog.
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The investigation started after a resident turned the video over to Deltona Animal Control.
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According to the Sheriff’s Office, the timestamp on the video indicates the incident took place on March 14. Deputies say the video shows the teen going into a neighbor’s yard on Covington Drive to get his dog after it ran away.
The video shows the teen pick the dog up by the neck and carry it back towards his own house where he then lifted it into the air and slammed on the ground.
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According to the sheriff’s office, he can then be seen straddling the dog and repeatedly punching it in its face then grabbing its head and slamming it into the ground multiple times. Deputies say the dog can also be heard in the video yelping throughout the abuse.
The teen’s grandmother told deputies she also saw the abuse and tried to tell her grandson to stop hurting the dog. According to the sheriff’s office, she said she disciplined the boy herself after she saw what happened.
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The boy was taken to the Family Resource Center to be processed for a felony charge of aggravated animal cruelty, then released to his grandmother by the Department of Juvenile Justice.
According to the sheriff’s office, Deltona Animal Control took custody of the dog and transported it to a local animal hospital to be examined.
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