Teens Arrested For Torturing And Shooting Dog They Tied To Railroad Tracks

Two Tampa teen friends, both aged 17, have been arrested for animal cruelty, after shooting a dog which they tied to railroad tracks for fun.

According to police, the dog, Cabela, was sold to the friends for the purpose of dog fighting, but when she was found not to be the best fighter, the teens decided to get rid of her.

When police got hold of a surveillance video, which showed the incident taking place, they were able to recognize one of the teens and then arrested the other teen involved as well.

There were reportedly other teens present as shown clearly in the video footage but they weren’t considered to be directly involved in the torturing or attempted murder of Cabela.

For their part, the suspects admitted that they had tortured Cabela, who is just one-year-old, as shown in the CCTV footage, they can be seen running away from Cabela after firing shots at her.

Due to those gunshots 911 was called and Sgt. Rich Mills arrived at the scene, followed by up to a dozen officers, to find the dog shot in her right shoulder, and neck after having been tied to the tracks with cargo tie-down cable.

As Mills told reporters, “She was letting us come to her aid.”

Following the incident, the owner of Tampa Bay Veterinary Emergency Services, Katy Meyer said in a Facebook statement,

“Justice for Cabela, now that an arrest has been made! We wish to thank the the Tampa Police Department for their thorough investigation into this horrible crime. We hope the individuals reponsible will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Cabela is doing very well, her bandage was removed last night and she is already bearing a small amount of weight on her leg. Her chances of making a full recovery are improving.”

Tampa Police Officer Greg Coller summed up the incident, telling reporters, “It just turns your stomach. I really don’t know what else to say.”