Man in viral dog abuse video released from King County Jail

A man arrested Saturday for allegedly abusing his dog has been released from King County Jail.

According to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office (KCPAO), the man accused of strangling and punching his dog inside a Seattle apartment was released from jail Monday.

Case McNerthney with KCPAO said the court found probable cause for animal cruelty before releasing the man on personal recognizance. However, the court did order the man to not possess any animals. He added that prosecutors argued for the man to be held in jail and bail to be set.

McNerthney said the case hasn’t been sent to King County prosecutors by the Seattle Police Department (SPD) so prosecutors cannot make a charging decision until they get the case. He added that “case referrals routinely come after a first appearance hearing in all types of cases, so this is not a criticism of Seattle police.”

“Animal cruelty cases are important, and prosecutors can make a charging decision right away when the case is referred to us by police investigators,” McNerthney stated.

Seattle officer arrests man accused of dog abuse

On Saturday a Seattle officer was sent to an animal cruelty call located at 131 10th Avenue East, according to the first appearance document from KCPAO.

The officer arrived and met with the caller who said he was putting up his Christmas tree when he looked out his window and saw a man in another unit “grab his dog by its neck and strangle it,” the document stated. He also told the officer he saw the man sit on his dog and start punching it.

The witness then showed the officer a video of the dog being strangled, sat on and punched more than a few times. The dog, a Pitbull, was flailing to escape.

According to the document, the officer knocked on the suspect’s door and he answered. The man matched the description of the person in the video and the officer observed a Pitbull sitting in a crate. The officer then arrested the man for animal cruelty. The dog was taken to the animal shelter.

Local crime: New info about suspect accused in series of Seattle stabbings revealed

Seattle community takes action to save dog

KIRO 7 reported the disturbing video was posted online. Angel, the one-year-old Pitbull, gained the attention of hundreds of people on social media overnight Sunday.

“I saw when that guy’s arm went back and I had to look away,” Stephen Sinclair said.

Sinclair told KIRO 7 one of his neighbors, who captured the video, which can be seen here, explained the dog was being beaten by its owner. Therefore Sinclair decided to take matters into his own hands.

“Because the dog was in imminent danger of being killed or seriously injured,” he said.

In less than 24 hours, Sinclair received dozens of messages and even a phone call from Seattle City Council member Joy Hollingsworth.

“She told me on the phone before I got there, she said, I’m not leaving until I have that dog in my arms,” Sinclair explained.

Hollingsworth told KIRO 7 she saw the violent video on Nextdoor on Monday morning.

“Your heart is, you know, it hurts, right? And so, the first thing I thought about was immediate action,” she said.

Hollingsworth said she knew the location and stood outside the apartment with other neighbors until police could get Angel out safely.

“Just joy,” she said. “Grateful for all the people that helped and it took a labor of love. A lot of the people around the community, our SPD. Shout out to them. The people on the ground management. It took a lot to be able to get this dog the help that it needs.”

Seattle police arrested the 19-year-old man. Sinclair said there was a collective sigh of relief when Angel walked out of the apartment.

“Oh, everybody cheered when she came,” he added. “In this case, a dog was saved. You know, in less than a day, 24 hours. And only because we can communicate so rapidly and so quickly.”

Other news: Kent police reminds non-English speakers, those hard of hearing they can still use 911

Future of pitbull rescued from Seattle apartment

Hollingsworth took Angel to the vet where she found out the sweet pup was malnourished but full of love.

“It makes you feel a lot happy that she’s gonna be in a safe space and we’re gonna get her the attention she needs,” she said.

It was the action of the community as a whole that may have saved Angel’s life.

“We have to be able to speak up and we have to work together,” Hollingsworth said. “And what I saw today is everybody literally working together to triage the situation and nothing meant anything more than for us to make sure that we got the puppy safe.”

For those who would like to help, neighbors have set up a GoFundMe to take care of vet fees.

Angel is expected to go to a loving foster home on Tuesday.

Contributing: Samantha Lomibao, KIRO 7 News and Julia Dallas, MyNorthwest