Man and woman tie large rock to dog's neck and throw her into river, get arrested
Two people were arrested and charged in Nottinghamshire for trying to drown their dog. They had tied a carrier bag with a large rock to the dog's and threw it into a river.
Investigation started after a brave woman spotted the dog, a Belgian shepherd identified as Bella from her microchip, struggling in River Trent around 8:45 am on January 6. Nottinghamshire police said this in a press release.
The woman jumped in and managed to drag the dog to safety and found a carrier bag containing a large rock tied to her leash. She was subsequently taken by the police to a local vet for treatment.
"This was an evil and nasty thing to do to this poor dog and we are making every effort to find out who is responsible. We are lucky that the kind member of the public found and rescued her," said Constable Pace, of the Nottinghamshire Police.
He also appealed to anyone with dash-cam or CCTV footage of vehicles in Long Lane that may show people in the area at the time of the incident to come forward to assist in their investigation.
"We are working with the RSPCA and are conducting microchip inquiries," he added. "Her name was recorded in 2010 as Bella on her microchip but it is possible she may be known by another name if her owner has changed since then. If anyone recognizes her and knows who owns her please get in touch on 101, quoting incident number 103 of 6 January 2020."
Later the same day, police arrested a 31-year-old woman on suspicion of animal cruelty offenses in connection to the incident, before arresting another 32-year-old man on January 7.
Authorities are still investigating further and have asked members of the public to continue coming forward with information. "Whilst we have made an arrest, we are still appealing for information about the circumstances of the incident, including how many people were involved," Pace said.
Bella is still recovering at the vet and is said to be doing "quite poorly," though it has been revealed that she "has been showing some encouraging signs by eating."