Video Shows Man Confronting Dog Walker After Pet Fatally Stabbed

Police are hunting for a man who allegedly stabbed a couple's pet dog to death in New York's Central Park.

The attack is said to have happened on Saturday evening while the couple walked their two dogs, a pit bull/German Shepherd mix called Eli and a miniature pinscher, on their leashes. Another man was walking three dogs, said to be pit bulls, off the leash. The pack reportedly attacked the restrained animals and chaos ensued as the couple tried to break up the fight and remonstrate with the other dog-walker. The owner of the aggressive dogs then stabbed Eli to death with a switchblade, according to local news channel ABC 7.

Footage of the distraught owner confronting the alleged killer as he fled the scene was shared on Twitter by reporter Kemberly Richardson:

According to the Humane Society, intentional cruelty to animals is strongly correlated with other crimes, including violence against people. Up to 83 percent of domestic violence victims reported that their abuser also hurt or killed their pets. It's not the first time a dog has been killed following an altercation.

The horrifying violence in New York broke out near the entrance to the park at East 106th Street and Fifth Avenue at around 8:30 p.m., according to reports.

Video filmed at the scene shows a man hurriedly walking away with three medium-sized dogs, only one of which is on a leash. The man, who was wearing an orange baseball hat, a gray shirt, and blue jeans, remains silent and keeps walking with his back to the camera, as the distraught dog owner shouts after him. "You better not show your face—you killed my dog, you piece of ****. Big man, huh? Big tough guy?" The owner, whose face was pixelated, appears to try to take a photo of the suspect on his cell phone, then turns back towards the camera. "He killed my dog, man! See? Talking all big—he stabbed my dog."

An unidentified witness told ABC 7: "There was a dog on the ground that was dead, a lot of blood around it, a guy was trying to do something—and three other pit bulls without leashes...three pit bulls around him." Another dog-walker who uses the park, Megan Stafford, added: "I just can't believe someone would attack an innocent dog. I don't know what's wrong with people—it's so heartbreaking."

The couple whose dog was allegedly killed during the incident were interviewed by the New York Post, which agreed to withhold their surname as they fear retribution. Brian, 52, who had been with his wife Melanie, 43, said he knew the owner by sight and had previously spoken to him, but the man's dogs had never attacked his pets before Saturday. He added: "He's a crazy guy... I was trying to correct him and say it's not OK, your dog just tried to bite my dog. And then he just wanted to be a tough guy... We just had words, like, regular, stupid guy words. All of a sudden, three dogs are attacking me and [my wife] picked up my little dog... because [the suspect] was trying to punch me." Brian said he tried to use pepper spray on the suspect to end the assault, but failed to stop the attacker who then stabbed Eli during the fracas.

The couple rushed Eli to the vet but the pet could not be saved. The New York Police Department is investigating but no arrests have yet been made.

Newsweek has reached out to NYPD for further information and comment.

In similar cases, owners have been injured or killed trying to protect their dogs from other animals. A Texas man was mauled to death while protecting his dog who was attacked by a neighbor's animals who had escaped from their yard back in February.

In a 15-year period between 2005 and 2019, dogs killed 521 Americans, according to DogsBite.org, a website that tracks dog attacks. It added: "Pit bulls contributed to 66 percent (346) of these deaths. Combined pit bulls and rottweilers contributed to 76 percent of the total recorded deaths."