Man beats dog to death in Muntinlupa; video goes viral

A man was caught on video beating to death a dog in Muntinlupa City on Saturday. The video has since gone viral, according to a report on Unang Balita on Tuesday.

Redge Espanilla, owner of the dog named Seven, said that in the video she took, her neighbor Michael Bobby Potot Jr. alias Jay-R could be seen beating her pet with a piece of wood until the dog died.

According to Espanilla, Jay-R said Seven ran after his child. However, Espanilla said witnesses said Seven only barked at the child.

This incident prompted Jay-R to hit Seven. Espanilla said she could not do anything to stop him especially since she is pregnant.

According to a witness, Cezar Dipus Jr., he and Jay-R were drinking when the latter said a lot of people wanted to kill Seven.

He said Jay-R first got a washing board and used it to hit Seven. Then he went home and came back with a piece of wood, went to the second floor, and there hit the dog again.

Dipus said he could not stop Jay-R for fear that the latter will hit him instead.

In a Facebook post, Jay-R's partner defended him and said Seven almost bit their child.

On Monday, Espanilla formally filed a complaint against Jay-R at the Muntinlupa Police Station and Prosecutor's Office.

Aside from allegedly committing animal cruelty, the suspect also threatened to inflict harm on them, Espanilla said.

Police Senior Inspector Magno V. Belmi of the Muntinlupa Police Station said the suspect may face charges of violation of Republic Act No. 8485 or the Animal Welfare Act of 1998.

The suspect may face a prison term of one year, six months and one day up to two years, and a penalty not more than P100,000.

Anna Cabrera of the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) urged the public to not only take videos of incidents of animal abuse, but to also report the matter to the police.

A manhunt is ongoing to locate the suspect. —KG, GMA News