A Fort Lauderdale man is dealing with costs after he was discovered with a malnourished canine inside a stolen rental automobile on March 10.
An officer stopped the U-Haul Ford van alongside Oakland Park Boulevard in Sunrise after its tag got here again to a stolen automobile.
When questioned, the motive force — recognized as 26-year-old Andrew Walter Johnson — stated he had not but returned the van as a result of he was at the moment dwelling in it together with his girlfriend till they get their tax return.
The police officer then found a black and white feminine Dalmatian at the back of the van, who seemed to be considerably malnourished, in line with an arrest report.
The officer noticed the canine, named Oreo, who was very skinny together with her hip and rib bones seen. Oreo additionally had extraordinarily lengthy nails, a stained coat and seemed to be affected by malnutrition, the report acknowledged.
A search of the automobile confirmed no signal of pet food or water — solely two empty bowls. There was additionally no leash, bedding or cage for the pet.
Johnson, who has been Oreo’s proprietor since 2020, claims he misplaced her and one other canine at a canine park in Fort Lauderdale earlier this yr. He allegedly discovered her two weeks later and has been together with her since mid to late February, the report continued.
Police say Johnson claimed he had been feeding Oreo 3 times a day and was making an attempt to get her weight again up, however her bodily look stated in any other case.
He was arrested on costs of misdemeanor animal cruelty and failure to return a rental automobile.
