MOSES LAKE, Wash. — Moses Lake police charged a man with animal cruelty after a video showing a dog being hit started circulating on social media.
The video shows a man repeatedly punching a dog in the backyard of a home. Another dog is also seen running away from the man. After the man stopped hitting the dog, he goes back inside a home. The video appears to be taken from over a fence without the man’s knowledge.
Dakota O'Keefe was charged with second degree animal cruelty, according to Moses Lake Police Captain Mike Williams.
Williams said the video was taken by the O'Keefe's neighbor after they heard what was going on. The neighbor then sent the video to police.
When officers arrived on scene, O'Keefe told officers the dog, who was seen in the video being hit, had killed another dog at the home, according to Williams.
Williams said the body of a Chihuahua was recovered from the home and appeared to have been killed by another animal.
The other dog was taken from the home and is in the care of Grant County Animal Outreach, Williams said. It's being determined whether or not the dog will be euthanized.
On Sunday evening, the Moses Lake Police Department posted on Facebook saying they were investigating a case of alleged animal abuse after a video started circulating on social media. The video was sent to officer so they could begin investigating.
About a half hour after police posted that they were looking into the matter, they said a dog in the video was safe and taken into custody. They said charges are pending against a suspect.
“We understand how sensitive this topic is, as we are also animal lovers, and most of us, pet owners,” police said in the Facebook post.
Moses Lake police said even when animal control is not on shift, the department takes animal abuse seriously.
