(LAS VEGAS) — A man has been arrested after leaving a 3-month-old Husky puppy with its mouth taped shut locked inside a hot car while he gambled at a Las Vegas casino.
The incident occurred on July 20 when the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department received a call from security at the Bellagio Hotel & Casino at 3600 S. Las Vegas Boulevard at approximately 3 p.m. when they discovered a puppy locked inside a vehicle on the top floor of their parking garage with its mouth taped shut, police say.
The high temperature that day in Las Vegas was 113 degrees.
Authorities say that security was able to get the dog out of the car through the vehicle’s sunroof.
In body camera footage released by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, the Husky puppy can be seen panting heavily in the backseat of the car as officers responded to the scene.
“Where is the dog at?” one of the responding police officers can be heard asking as he is directed toward the vehicle where the dog was found.
“[There was a] lot of saliva,” says a witness who was caught on the officer’s body camera. “He wasn’t able to breathe.”
A man — later identified as 50-year-old Raul Carbajal — can then be seen approaching the car as the officer asks him if he is the owner of the vehicle.
“Yes,” the man responds.
The officer subsequently turns Carbajal around, places handcuffs on him and tells him he is under arrest.
“Through our investigation, we discovered the dog had been in the car for nearly 2 hours without air conditioning, food, or water while the vehicle’s owner went inside to gamble,” the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said in a statement published on social media.
Carbajal was taken into custody and charged with willful and malicious torture of an animal, police say.
Authorities received an update on the condition of the 3-month old Husky puppy on Thursday and said that it is still with animal control and receiving medical treatment following the July 20 incident.
Police closed out their statement with a strong warning to the public: “DO NOT LEAVE PEOPLE OR ANIMALS IN HOT CARS. PERIOD.”
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