SAN ANTONIO – A man who told Animal Care Officers that his dog died from depression after a neighbor saw him carrying it by its neck has been arrested, according to authorities.
William Rose, 40, was charged with cruelty to non-livestock animals on Monday, months after a necropsy found the animal died from strangulation, booking records show.
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An arrest affidavit states a neighbor saw Rose carrying the dog, named “Rocky,” around by its neck on Aug. 8 at an apartment complex.
He told his neighbors that the dog had died and he was going to “walk it around one last time,” the affidavit states. One witness said it appeared a wire was around the dog’s neck.
A neighbor called the police after they saw Rose place the dog in a makeshift shrine behind his apartment.
When officers with ACS arrived, Rose told them that he didn’t know how the dog died, police said. Rose said the dog “died from depression,” the affidavit states.
A necropsy performed on Sept. 8 found that the dog’s possible death was from mechanical asphyxia due to strangulation. The pet had ligature marks around its neck, police said.
On Sept. 14, an SAPD detective interviewed Rose at the Bexar County Jail, where he was booked on a separate charge.
Rose told the detective and an ACS officer that on the day the dog died, he took him for a “long walk” without the dog on a leash.
He said that a security guard from the apartment complex confronted him and told him to put the dog on a leash, the affidavit states.
“He stated that since he did not have a leash, he held onto the dog by its collar,” causing the dog’s front paws to lift off the floor for most of the walk, police said. The walk lasted about 20 minutes.
The dog appeared to have trouble breathing when they returned to the apartment, Rose told authorities. He said the dog was alive when he left the apartment but returned to find it dead an unknown amount of time later.
Rose told authorities that he wanted to carry the pet one more time before throwing him in the dumpster, the affidavit states.
Cruelty to non-livestock animals is a third-degree felony charge. His bond was set at $25,000, booking records show.
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