Surveillance video helps Las Vegas police catch alleged dog killer
The dog dangled from a fence for a second time — “thrashing” in the air, struggling to breathe — before it freed itself and ran toward the owner, who had hanged it there, Las Vegas police said.
The Japanese Tosa breed, named Lady, then flipped belly up in a “submissive” pose, police said, citing surveillance footage of the Oct. 4 act.
But Carlos Fonseca Jr., 27, hanged his dog twice more, the fourth time being the last before it went limp and died, according to his arrest warrant.
Police arrested Fonseca on Oct. 19 on and booked him into the Clark County Detention Center on four counts of willfully torturing or killing a dog, Las Vegas Justice Court logs show.
A manager of a tavern in the 3000 block of South Nellis Boulevard called police after spotting the dead animal in the back of the business, hanging from a fence tucked between a wall and a dumpster, the Metropolitan Police Department said. Video of the business helped investigators piece together the killing.
Images showed a man walking a dog on a leash and leading it toward the fence. He was then seen tossing the leash over the fence and yanking on it.
The dog walked away when the man freed it, but he went after it, repeating the violent act. That time, the dog freed itself, but was hung a third time before the man released it and both left.
About 12 minutes later, the man returned with his animal and hung it a fourth and final time. As he was walking away, the man appeared to be documenting the hanging on his phone’s camera.
Detectives obtained additional surveillance footage and tracked down the man’s address, Metro said.
They spoke to a neighbor and to Fonseca’s girlfriend, with whom he shared the dog. She told police that she thought he’d returned the dog to its original owner.
On Oct. 11, Metro released footage of the man and the dog, asking the public for help identifying him. The next day, after the images began circulating online, Fonseca abruptly quit his job a few minutes into his shift, noting that he had a family emergency, police said.
On Oct. 14, Metro submitted a warrant for his arrest. He was in custody five days later.
A judge in that case set a $5,000 bail, and Fonseca is due back in court Nov. 8.
He also is being held on a parole violation for a 2016 case in which he pleaded guilty to battery with a deadly weapon, Clark County District Court logs show.
Contact Ricardo Torres-Cortez at rtorres@reviewjournal.com. Follow @rickytwrites on Twitter.
